A 17-year-old international student from China who was the victim of a cyber kidnapping was found safe Sunday in the mountains outside Salt Lake City, Utah, authorities said.
The young man, identified as Kai Zhuang, disappeared from his host home on Thursday after being told by cybercriminals that his family in his native China was being threatened. USA Today report Monday.
A great job by the Riverdale Police Department, Weber County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue Drone Team, Utah State Police Aviation Division, FBI, and Brigham City Police and Fire Department.
Contributor Riverdale City, Utah upon Monday, January 1, 2024
“The family told police they paid the $80,000 ransom after Zhuang sent photos showing he was being held against his will,” the paper said.
Authorities found a young man who appeared to be alone in a tent in a ravine near the city, amid recorded sub-zero temperatures.
In a social media post Monday, the city of Riverdale, Utah be familiar with The moment the boy was discovered:
Sergeant Engstrom of the Riverdale Police Department walked up the mountainside and found the victim's tent in a wooded area. Sergeant Engstrom contacted the victim inside the tent and found him alive but very cold and frightened. The victim felt relieved after coming to the police. There was no heat source inside the victim's tent, only a heating blanket, sleeping bag, limited food and water, and several phones believed to have been used to carry out the cyber kidnapping. The Brigham Fire Department responded to the scene and checked the victim for hypothermia, resolving any serious medical concerns.
Officials said it appears someone tricked Zhuang into fleeing his host's home in order to force his family to pay a large ransom.
“Cyber kidnappers are targeting foreign students, especially Chinese students,” a post from Riverdale, Utah, said. “They tell the victims to isolate and monitor them through FaceTime calls and Skype.”
Cyber kidnappers often target people in new places and environments where the culture and law enforcement are unfamiliar, cybersecurity experts say. explained During an interview with KUTV:
Meanwhile, law enforcement expert Chris Bartram said: Said KSL News He was shocked that the kidnappers could fool a teenage boy and his family without actually meeting them.
“They isolate the victim, they isolate the targeted family, they isolate the target, and they put them in a situation where they both believe that something happened and now they have to pay. groups are also very afraid of what is happening,” he said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1nLDxSS1pk
Authorities are currently searching for the kidnappers involved in the incident.
“Police in another city in Utah said they found Zhuang with camping gear on December 20th and, concerned about the cold weather, took him back to his host family. “They did not tell us that they were already under the control of cyber kidnappers.” USA Today The report noted.
