Watsonville family becomes victim of virtual kidnappers in Mexico

A Watsonville family’s vacation became an over-the-phone scam, and now they are sharing their story to keep others from becoming victims of virtual kidnappings.

In virtual kidnappings, the criminals do not take the victim, but instead, everything is done over the phone. The calls are targeted, and the goal is to convince people that they are being kidnapped and ask for a ransom.

The Watsonville family went to Puerto Vallarta first, but then traveled to Guadalajara. While there, the family of four got a late-night phone call at their hotel room.

“He said, ‘We’re going over there and get in the room and kill you all you guys or cut you up. It was hard, so we did exactly what they want,” said the mother of two, who did not want to share her identity.

Watsonville police Detective Gustavo Zamora said the family was forced to give the caller their relatives’ contact information, buy prepaid phones and stay off all personal phones, which made them difficult to contact.

Zamora said the virtual kidnappers called the victims’ family in Watsonville multiple times demanding money. Police said the kidnappers threatened to kill the family if they did not pay the $50,000 ransom.

The victims’ family went to Watsonville police. Detectives and the FBI worked with a Mexican anti-kidnapping team, and after nearly 30 hours, the family was found in the hotel room.

The FBI tracked the caller’s phone to a Mexican prison.

“The FBI has found that many of these calls originate from the inside of Mexican prisons. These people have all the time in the world to make these calls using smuggled phones while working with others on the outside. If you ever get a call like this, hang up, do not engage, never give them any personal information and call law enforcement right away,” Zamora said.

The family has returned to the Central Coast and hopes others will learn from their experience.

“Be safe, to tell where you’re going, where you’re at; the communication with your family. If you’re going to a simple store, a simple hotel, wherever you go, just give the information to your family and be safe,” said the mother.