BURLINGTON — Police are warning of a phone scam where callers seek to convince people their loved ones are being held hostage and will be killed if the victim doesn’t pay the scammers.
Burlington police began investigating after being contacted by a 23-year-old Milton woman who reported Monday that she received a call telling her that her husband had been taken hostage and would be killed if she didn’t comply, according to a news release.
The woman was told that if she made any attempt to contact her husband or anyone else, the caller would kill her husband. She was then told to send money via Western Union, and once it was verified that the money was sent, her husband would be released, said Lt. Michael Warren in the news release. Police did not say how much the scammers sought in ransom.
It was later determined that the husband was fine and the incident was a scam, Warren said. An investigation found multiple reports from Burlington, Williston and Bennington of similar scams, according to police.
“This scam is very concerning as the suspects are extremely convincing and have caused a significant amount of emotional and financial stress on the victims they have targeted,” Warren said in a statement.
The public should be cautious anytime someone asks for money to be sent via Western Union or another money order service. If people suspect they are being targeted in a scam, police encourage them to call law enforcement immediately.
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