Man charged with extortion after faking his own kidnap
Print Edition
A MAN who faked his own kidnapping in order to get his father to pay a 5,000 yuan (US$800) ransom has been charged with extortion, Shanghai police said yesterday.
The 20-year-old, surnamed Zhang, concocted the plan then paid an accomplice, surnamed Wu, 500 yuan to send a cellphone message to his father demanding the cash.
The pair were regulars at an Internet cafe and Zhang, who is unemployed, wanted the money to fund his online game-playing, police said.
In the message, Wu wrote: “Your son is in my hands. I want to borrow 5,000 yuan from you because I’m short of money for food.”
Zhang the elder was instructed to put the money in a black plastic bag and leave it at a designated place at night.
The note warned that the “hostage” would be killed if Zhang went to the authorities.
Undeterred, the father alerted police and two officers were sent to stake out the “drop.”
When two men arrived to collect the money, the officers moved in, only to discover one of them to be the alleged hostage.
Police said the second man, surnamed Gao, was oblivious to the scam and was released without charge.
Zhang’s real accomplice, Wu, is wanted for questioning.
Zhang later told police he planned to ask for a ransom of 7,000 yuan but decided it would be too much for his father to raise. His parents are migrant workers who have lived in the city for many years.
Under Chinese law, a victim of blackmail can request all charges be dropped if the perpetrator is a relative. Zhang’s father, however, did not exercise the option and his son was formally charged.
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