Recently an individual contacted a Fortune 500 company via email from South
America and notified them of a plot to kidnap the CEO's family members. The
individual provided vague information relating to the CEO and his/her
family; however there was enough personal information within the email to
cause a great deal of concern.
The author of the email stated that several individuals tried to recruit him
to participate in the kidnapping. The author stated he fled his home to
avoid being involved in the plot and wanted to share the information in
hopes of warning the intended victims. The author stated he had
documentation, photographs, and videotapes that would validate his story of
the kidnapping plot. The author wanted to send these items to the victims or
his/her company but was having financial difficulties and could not afford
to do so. At this point, the victim company wired the author of the email a
small dollar amount to cover the cost of shipping the evidence of the plot.
After the money was transferred the author did not contact the victim or the
company again and none of the items of evidence were ever received.
The author was never fully identified; however the emails were verified as
being sent from South America. It is feared that this individual may be
contacting other companies or high profile individuals with similar
information of a threat.
It is strongly recommended that any company that experiences similar
circumstances contact your local FBI Field Office to report any such
criminal activity.
