"Chinese Exchange Student Rescued from Utah Mountains Following 'Cyber Kidnapping' Extortion Scam"

A 17-year-old Chinese exchange student, Kai Zhuang, was rescued from a tent in the Utah wilderness after being victimized by a "cyber kidnapping" scam that led his parents to pay $80,000 in ransom. The scam involved convincing Kai to isolate himself and simulate a kidnapping scenario to extort money from his family. He was found "cold and scared" by a sergeant after a days-long search involving bank records and phone pings. The rescue was a collaborative effort between Riverdale police, the FBI, the US embassy in China, and Chinese officials. The Chinese embassy has since issued a warning against such scams targeting Chinese citizens in the US.