A Las Vegas mother says a caller using artificial intelligence to mimic her daughter's voice terrorized her for nearly six hours and conned her out of thousands of dollars in what was staged as a cartel kidnapping.
She told police the stranger on the line demanded $15,000 and would not let her hang up, ordering her to drive from banks to grocery stores to a neighborhood Walmart while he dictated how to send money to Toluca, Mexico. The ordeal, she says, only stopped when she ran out of cash and finally called her sister for help.
Susette told News3LV the call came in around 8:30 a.m. on April 7 and that "the first thing I heard on the call was my daughter." The man, who identified himself as "Angel," told her to send money for pickup in Toluca and to buy a money order at a local Walmart. She says she ultimately sent about $2,000 before the caller dropped off. Metro Police Officer Robert Wicks told the station that scammers lean on frightening storylines and intense pressure to keep victims under their control and urged people to verify a situation by texting or checking directly on the loved one.
AI Voice Cloning Supercharges Old-School Family Emergency Scams
Federal consumer agencies warn that voice cloning is turning classic "family emergency" cons into far more convincing shakedowns. The FTC explains that scammers can copy someone's voice from just a short clip posted online, then use it to deliver a fake plea for help. The agency tells consumers to "don't trust the voice" and to confirm any emergency claim by calling a number they already know belongs to their relative.
The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center is also tracking the surge in artificial intelligence abuse. According to the IC3 2025 annual report, the center logged more than 22,000 AI-related complaints with roughly $893 million in reported losses, a snapshot of how quickly criminals are adopting synthetic audio and other AI tools.
Police Flag Classic Red Signs Of A Scam
Officers and consumer advocates say the script Susette describes follows a familiar pattern. Red flags typically include urgent demands for money that cannot easily be traced, instructions to stay on the line and keep the call secret, and orders to send funds overseas or to a specific pickup location.
Wicks told the station that scammers "use headlines to create fear" and try to dominate the conversation so victims do not stop to think. His advice: step away from the call, reach out to someone you trust and independently verify where your loved one is before moving a single dollar. If a caller is pushing you to wire money, buy a money order or hand cash to a stranger, police say you should treat it as a likely scam.
How To Respond And Where To Report If You Are Targeted
If you suspect someone is running this kind of scheme on you, experts say to halt the transaction immediately and contact your bank or payment service, then notify local law enforcement. You can file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov and report fraud to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Both agencies recommend double checking a loved one's status using a phone number you already have saved or through a prearranged family code word.
Susette told the station she hopes her experience keeps someone else from being taken. She urged anyone who finds themselves in a similar panic to "just take one minute to verify" before sending money.
