Woman at Convenience Store "My Daughter Has Been Kidnapped"... Store Owner and Police Collaborate to Prevent This

An Incident in Daegu... Woman Came to Convenience Store While on Call
Asked Store Owner to "Report Voice Phishing" Then Left
Store Owner Asked Police Officer for Help, Preventing Further Damage

A woman who was almost tricked into transferring money after falling for a voice phishing scam claiming her daughter had been kidnapped escaped a crisis thanks to the calm response of a convenience store owner and a police officer. On the 8th, the official YouTube channel of the Korean National Police Agency uploaded a video titled "A mysterious note received by a convenience store owner, a police officer with a serious expression." In the video, it is shown that on November 8th last year, around 3:40 p.m., a woman entered a convenience store in Seo-gu, Daegu, looking distressed.

A woman who heard a voice phishing call claiming her daughter was kidnapped and requested the convenience store owner to report it. National Police Agency of Korea YouTube

The woman entered the convenience store while talking to someone on the phone and immediately headed to the checkout counter. While continuing the call, she asked the store owner to write a note, and the note she wrote said, "My daughter has been kidnapped. I think this is a voice phishing call, so please report it to the police." She recognized it as a voice phishing call herself and tried to report the incident through the convenience store owner.

However, as the crying voice of a woman resembling her college-aged daughter continued to be heard on the other end of the phone, she eventually left to transfer the money demanded by the voice phishing scammer. Meanwhile, the convenience store owner calmly reported the incident to 112 (emergency number) and was checking the victim’s movements. While waiting for the police to arrive, patrol officers who happened to be patrolling the area entered the convenience store.

As soon as the store owner saw them, he loudly called for help, and sensing the seriousness of the situation, the officers asked the owner, "Who gave you this note?" and began to understand the circumstances of the incident. The owner reportedly said, "A woman just came in and gave me this, saying she received a call that her daughter was kidnapped and asked me to report it. It seems like voice phishing."

The store owner and the officers worked together to locate the woman, who was found sitting on a bench about 50 meters from the convenience store. At that time, the woman was tearful and was just about to transfer 1 million won. Even after the officers arrived, the woman tried to run away, fearing harm might come to her daughter. However, after the officers persuaded her, she stopped the transfer and was able to avoid falling victim to the voice phishing scam. Later, after confirming through the police that her daughter was safe, the woman shed tears she had been holding back and expressed her gratitude to the police.