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Human Smuggling Scam Targets Hispanic Families

By Mark Huffman
ConsumerAffairs.com

May 1, 2007

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Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter is cautioning the Hispanic community about a human smuggling scam.

Scam artists are calling, claiming to have successfully smuggled a family member across the border and threatening to hold him/her in custody until they receive payment through wire transfer. Often the payment is several thousand dollars.

“One frightening element of this scam is that the con artists have detailed information about the family that makes them very believable and persuades people to give into their demands,” Carter said.

“These families are being bullied by believing that their family member might be in distress or detained if they don’t help, and feel pressured to immediately go along with the demands of the person who called.”

Human smuggling is the illegal transportation of a person across the border and is generally conducted with the consent of the person being smuggled. Often individuals pay large sums of money to smugglers to reach their destination.

The attorney general’s office says it has been contacted by several people who have fallen victim to the scam, sending thousands of dollars, only to learn that their family member was never in custody of a smuggler.

The scam artists know the names of the victim’s family members as well as additional personal information such as the victim’s native country, relative’s names and addresses.

“It’s important that citizens speak to their family members directly before wire transferring money to a stranger,” Carter added. “This scam is particularly disturbing because it creates fear and worry on the part of the victim that if they don’t send money, a family member could be in distress.”

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