Police in Toronto say they’ve located three students who “went into hiding” after falling victim to an alleged scam targeting their families back in China.
Police say the three students were contacted by someone who told them that their families would be in danger unless they went into hiding and stayed off their phones and social media.
The suspect or suspects then contacted the students’ families and told them that their loved one had been kidnapped and would not be released unless they complied with a hefty ransom.
Police said they have no evidence to suggest any of the students were actually abducted.
It’s believed the students were targeted because they had recently arrived in Canada to study.
“The students are somewhat isolated,” Const. Craig Brister said over the weekend. “They don’t have a lot of friends or family here in Canada.”
Police say 17-year-old Yue “Kandy” Liu and 16-year-old Ke “Jaden” Xu were both found safe on Monday.
Twenty-year-old Juanwen Zhang was found on Saturday. According to police, Zhang eventually turned on her phone and saw text messages from her friends urging her to contact authorities.
Anyone with information about the investigation is being asked to call police or Crime Stoppers.
