Troopers warn public of scam targeting families of missing persons

WASILLA—The Alaska State Troopers recently announced a new, nationwide scam that’s starting to get a foothold in Alaska.

According to AST Public Information Officer Austin McDaniel, cyber attackers are scouring social media sites for posts to gain information about local missing persons. Scammers take advantage of this information to send text messages to families demanding ransom for the missing parties and telling them not to contact the authorities.

These scams can eventually lead to people being tricked into paying the fake ransoms with their PayPal accounts or similar methods.

According to a recent press release, some Alaskans have already been targeted by this scam.

“This scam is particularly disturbing and abhorrent as distraught families are already navigating the uncertainty and grief associated with their loved one’s disappearance,” AST Director, Colonel Bryan Barlow stated in the press release.” “Not only will the family potentially fall for the scam and lose money, the scam itself can exponentially intensify the grief and anxiety they are already feeling. We must raise public awareness for these despicable scams for the wellbeing of all Alaskans.”

McDaniel said that troopers are actively working with local law enforcement agencies and their federal partners to investigate the situation and process reports from the public. He noted that based on their findings, it seems like the scams typically originate outside the U.S.

“It’s playing with those emotions to try and make quick cash. We would encourage anybody that receives a text message or phone call to reach out to law enforcement, let law enforcement know, because we would hate to see any Alaskans fall victim to this scam or any type of scam,” McDaniels said.

Anyone who receives a text message asking for money in exchange for their missing loved one is encouraged to refrain from responding, report the scam to akcic@alaska.gov, and contact the agency handling the missing persons case.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com