The AI Kidnapping Call That Felt Completely Real | Forensic Files

Hi Crime Junkies, I'm your host Ashley Flowers. And the story I have for you today is one that I want you to listen
to every single second of. Because by the time it's over, you're going to want to call every person you love and do one
simple thing that could save you from one of the most terrifying experiences imaginable. This is about something
that's happening right now to real people. And as technology gets more advanced, so do the criminals looking to
exploit it. Lots of people have no idea that this is even possible. And the real unsettling part? How cheap
and accessible the tools to do this actually are, and how fast they're evolving. This is the story about how
hearing the voice of someone you love could be the beginning of a nightmare. And what you can do to fight back.
Jennifer DeStefano is one of those moms who's always on the move. She and her husband have four kids in close age, and
most weekends that means splitting up just to keep up. So on this particular late Friday afternoon, January 20th,
2023, while Jennifer is in Scottsdale, Arizona, swinging by their 13-year-old daughter's dance studio to pick her up
after a lesson, her husband is about 150 miles north in the mountains with their
youngest son and their 15-year-old daughter Breonna, so she can do some training for ski races. [music]
Now, Jennifer is getting out of her car in the studio parking lot when her phone
rings. It's an unknown number, and she almost lets it go to voicemail, but unknown calls can be from hospitals. And
with Breonna on a mountain, it's too risky to ignore [music] it, so she picks up. And it is Breonna on the line, but
she's crying, barely holding it together. And she tells Jennifer, "Mom, I messed up." Now, Jennifer doesn't
panic. She's thinking that maybe Breonna got hurt skiing. So she's like, you know, it's okay, Bri, calm down. What's
going on? What's wrong? And then she hears a man's [music] voice cut in. Telling Breonna to lay down and put her
head back. And then suddenly she hears her daughter cry out, "Mom, these bad men have me. Help me. Help me." And then
the man fully takes the phone and he tells Jennifer that he has her daughter. And if she calls the police or breathes
a word of this to anyone, they will never see her again because he's going to drug her, sexually
assault her, and leave her for dead in Mexico. [music] She can barely hear what he's saying
because all she can focus on is her daughter in the background yelling and pleading until her voice goes muffled
like she's being pulled away from the phone. Jennifer is shaking as she pushes through the dance studio doors. Now, she
keeps the man on speakerphone, but mutes herself so he can't hear her and she screams for help. And other moms gather
fast. One rushes outside to call 911 while the rest surround Jennifer and listen as the caller makes threat after
horrifying threat. >> [music] >> And Jennifer begs to speak to her daughter again. But the man won't put
her back on the phone. He's doing all of the talking now. And what he wants in exchange for Breonna's life is
staggering. $1 million dollars. Jennifer is willing to agree to anything right now. But once
she starts questioning how she's supposed to get him all that money, the guy starts doing the math in his head
and he decides on his own that there's no way she's going to be able to come up with that much money because he wants
cash only and he's not going to give her time to get it together. So, he makes this quick decision to give her a
discount. [music] He'll take $50,000 instead. And he's adamant. He's not willing to mess with wire transfers or
routing numbers. All that stuff is way too traceable. So, this is the plan. He says she needs to get the 50 grand
together >> [music] >> and then he's going to come pick her up in a white van. She'll get in, he'll put
a bag over her head, and then he'll bring her to some undisclosed place to exchange the money for Breonna.
And he warns Jennifer, >> [music] >> she better have every dollar on her when he gets there. Otherwise,
both her and her daughter are dead. Now, this whole time, Jennifer's younger daughter has been just
>> [music] >> standing there, frozen in fear as she listens to this man threaten to assault
and kill her sister and her mother. So, another parent actually grabs the girl's
phone and tries to contact Jennifer's husband, because he's way more likely to answer from his other daughter's number
than one he doesn't recognize, and they need to get in touch with him and find out what's going on. How long has she
been gone? Does he even know that she's missing yet? But, when she calls, the phone just rings
>> [music] >> and rings and rings and keeps rolling over to voicemail. As all of this chaos
is unfolding, the mom who called 911 comes back inside and begins talking to Jennifer. She says, [music]
"This has to be fake. The 911 dispatcher had told her that they've gotten more and more of these lately. A recording of
a loved one made from AI. They ask you to get some gift cards, Bitcoin, or something." But, Jennifer pushes back.
She's like, "That's not what this is. It wasn't a recording. This was a back-and-forth interactive conversation
with her daughter." And on top of that, they wanted to meet to get the money, which is like a whole different
ballgame, the likes of which the department probably hasn't seen. Still, according to the dispatcher they have on
the line, they say, "Don't trust it. The technology is advanced enough [music] for you to have a conversation with it.
It can even replicate emotions in someone's voice." But, Jennifer isn't buying it. This wasn't just an emotional
voice. It was Breonna's emotional voice, right down to the specific, unique way that
she cries, like the distinct quiver in her voice. How could a machine fake that? It seems impossible. So, Jennifer
is still keeping the guy on the line trying to stall until police arrive promising him that she's doing
everything she can to pull the money together. Then, in the midst of her panic, someone hands her a different
phone and it's a familiar voice she hears. Her husband's. He had been in the shower, which is why he'd missed the
barrage of calls over the past few minutes, but he's confused by the urgency because Brianna's fine. He's
looking at her. She's catching up on homework, not begging for her life. And they are both totally in the dark about
everything that's happening back in Scottsdale where Jennifer is. After what she has just been through hearing that
Brianna is fine from her husband isn't even enough. Jennifer needs to hear it from Brianna, but even her daughter's
voice on the line doesn't totally reassure her like she thought it would. She can't trust her own ears right now.
She keeps asking her, "Is it really you? Are you really okay?" over and over again until finally [music]
it sinks in. Her daughter is alive and well. And once she is finally convinced, Jennifer turns back to the would-be
kidnapper on the phone, but she's not fearful anymore. Now she is furious. [music]
She tells him that what he's doing is one of the most evil things a person can do.
And he tries to double down. He keeps insisting that he has her daughter and threatening to kill them both. But by
this point Jennifer is done. >> [music] >> She hangs up before she just collapses
on the floor in relief. Now this whole ordeal lasted about [music] 4 minutes. But when Jennifer thinks about the
damage that it did cause >> [music] >> and what it could have caused, it's chilling. And if there had been
someone to come get her, police wouldn't have been hot on her trail because by the way, they never showed up. I guess
since the dispatcher had already concluded it was a scam, they didn't even bother to send anyone, which is
kind of wild to me. Because I don't care how many of these calls that they've been hearing about, this one sounds
extreme. Like even if it started as a scam, God only knows where this was headed. Like what was the end game? Was
it all a test? Would someone have shown up for her? I don't know, and neither does Jennifer.
But when she followed up with law enforcement later that night, >> [music] >> she was basically told
no harm, no foul. They said there was no actual crime committed. No one was physically
kidnapped or harmed, no money exchanged hands. It was deemed a prank. >> [music]
>> That is not enough for Jennifer. She stays up all night trying to answer the questions running through her mind.
How did they get her daughter's voice? >> [music] >> Were they being watched? Had they been
targeted? Were they in any danger actually then or still? As she told our reporter Nina, she went through every
piece of Brianna's digital footprint that she could find. But Brianna's Instagram and her TikTok accounts are
private, and she only has a few dozen followers. And while there are a couple of like athletics related things of her
out there, there is nothing that comes close to explaining what Jennifer heard on that call. So still, to this day, she
hasn't been able to figure out how they did it. >> [music] >> But what she does find is a vast
community of people who have been through something similar. Because when Jennifer posted a warning about what
happened to her on Nextdoor, >> [music] >> the responses flood in. Some people were
nasty and said that Jennifer was just being gullible. But lots came back with their own versions of this same story.
This happened to me. This happened to my parents, to my sibling. One of the dance
studio moms said that her sister had recently been scammed out of $1,500 by the same type of call. A friend of
Jennifer's got a call that sounded exactly like her 8-year-old son begging for his life after she had just tucked
him into bed. The caller even used his private nickname. And this kid didn't even have a phone or social media or any
presence online. So, who the hell knows how they managed to replicate his voice?
>> [music] >> I mean, Jennifer's own mother had gotten a call from someone pretending to be
Jennifer's brother. But her mom is hard of hearing, so she kept asking the caller to repeat himself, and eventually
she just told him, "My son would never talk to me like this. Go find your real mother." And she hung up on him. And her
mom didn't even think to mention it until Jennifer's whole ordeal happened. And these weren't just
>> [music] >> fake kidnappings. Jennifer heard about fake arrests, fake medical emergencies,
you name it. Different scenarios, same [music] playbook. A loved one's voice on the other end of the line claiming to be
in some kind of crisis. So, what actually happens on these calls? Virtual kidnapping scams, where
someone calls a person claiming to have their loved one and demanding ransom, have been around for years. The old
version was crude. Maybe like a generic recording of someone screaming in the background and a scripted set of
threats. What has changed now, and what keeps [music] changing, is the technology. AI
voice cloning software can now replicate exactly what someone sounds like, their
specific cadence and inflection. Even like in Brianna's case, the unique way they cry. And the raw material is
everywhere. Voicemail greetings, a TikTok, an Instagram reel, a YouTube video, a podcast. Hi. Anything.
And they don't need much. Researchers at the cybersecurity company McAfee tested
these tools a couple of years ago and found that just 3 seconds of audio, less time than it takes to say, "Hello, who's
calling?" is enough to produce a convincing clone. And that was 3 years ago. Access to
software that can do that costs as little as $5 [music] a month now. Meanwhile, caller ID can be
spoofed to display your loved one's actual name and number. And [music] the scam keeps evolving.
In December 2025, the FBI issued a warning that criminals are now pairing these calls with AI-altered
proof-of-life photos. [music] Manipulated images of your loved one, often sent as disappearing messages,
timed to vanish before you have a chance to really like look at them, criticize them, analyze them. Cuz a few seconds of
panic is all it takes. Now, by all accounts, deepfake voice scams aren't just increasing, [music] they're
exploding. But clear statistics are hard to come by. The FBI told us that they get lumped
into broader categories, and a lot of cases never even make it into the numbers at all. Some victims are
embarrassed and don't report it. Others, like Jennifer's mom, don't even realize
that they've been targeted. And some who do try to report it end up in Jennifer's position, being told by
police that there's nothing they can do. Nothing happened. It was just a prank. And while local law enforcement is
getting more familiar with these scams, they are still damn near impossible to investigate. One of the biggest issues
is that a lot of these callers are operating outside of the US. >> [music] >> The money moves out of the country fast,
and by the time anyone starts looking into it, there's almost nothing left to trace. Many of these scams originate in
Mexico and target Latino families in the Southwestern US, where it's more believable when someone says that a
loved one has been taken over the border and held there. And those are also some
of the communities least likely to report. So, what do we know? These sorts of scams are basically run
like a business. FBI agent Whitney Mitchell compared it to a call center with operators constantly cycling
through numbers, threatening, demanding, and moving on. They go for volume over precision. They don't need many people
to fall for it because when someone does pay, the average amount is $11,000. But there aren't just financial
concerns. Take an incident that happened last September in Kansas. >> [music] >> A woman got a call that appeared to come
from her mother's phone. A man on the other end of the line claimed to have a gun to her mom's head and was demanding
a ransom. And in the background, [music] she could hear what sounded exactly like
her mother's voice. Her brother got an identical call, and when their mom didn't pick up her phone, they called
911. Police tracked their mother's phone location to a moving car, and thinking that it was an active hostage situation,
they executed a high-risk traffic stop with weapons drawn. What they found was the mother, totally safe, unaware any of
this was happening, driving a man that she actually knew to pick up his car. Scammers had spoofed her number to make
the calls appear to come from her, but she had no idea. [music] Now, luckily in that case, no one was hurt, at least not
physically. >> [music] >> But that was this time, and no one gets left unscathed even after the incidents
that police [music] just call a prank. Jennifer said that the trauma they went through was real, [music]
and it stayed with her. It's something Brianna has continued to deal with even as she moves forward with
her life. >> [music] >> She's in college now, where she is studying economics and, believe it or
not, AI. [music] She's learning to harness the tech that was once used to terrorize her family,
and she's doing well. But the whole thing left a lasting emotional scar on her, and she's had to
navigate more trauma after experiencing an AI-generated active shooter hoax and multiple lockdowns on her college
campus. Now, after Jennifer came forward with their story, the case became national news. [music] The media
attention reached Capitol Hill, and a senator asked Jennifer to testify before the US Senate Judiciary Committee at a
hearing on AI regulation, >> [music] >> which she did in June 2023. And here is a clip from her [music]
testimony. >> Money scams have been around for thousands of years. This is entirely
different. This is terrorizing lasting trauma. Even months later, sharing the story makes me shake to my core. It was
my daughter's voice. It was her cries. It was her sobs. It was the way she spoke. I will never be able to shake
that voice and the desperate cries for help out of my mind. It's every parent's worst nightmare to hear your child
pleading with fear and pain, knowing that they are being harmed and that you're helpless.
The longer this form of terror remains unpunishable, the farther and more egregious it will become. As our world
moves at a lightning fast pace, the human element of familiarity that lays foundation to our social fabric of what
is known and what is truth is being revolutionized with AI. Some for good and some for evil. No
longer can we trust seeing is believing, or I heard it with my own ears, or even
the sound of your own child's voice. I ask you, when your mother calls, are you going to hang up on her and call her
back to make sure it's her? When your child calls in need of help, will you end the call and say I don't
believe it's really you? Is this our new normal? Is this the future we are creating by enabling the abuses of
artificial intelligence without consequence and without regulation? >> So far, regulation hasn't caught up.
[music] For the first time, all 50 states introduced AI-related legislation in 2025. But even with that movement,
there is no clear roadmap. At the federal level, administrations are putting up and then pulling back
guardrails like some kind of chess piece that will play well with whoever they're
trying to appeal to or will make them the most money. >> [music] >> No one is actually giving a [ __ ] about
the people who are being hurt by this new technology that operates pretty much unregulated. One of the only major
AI-related laws Congress has actually managed to pass so far targets fake images. There is no comprehensive
federal law specifically governing AI voice cloning. In a lot of ways, it is still like the Wild West. By the time
anyone figures out how to respond to one version of this, the technology has already moved on, getting cheaper,
faster, >> [music] >> and scariest of all, harder to detect. And it's especially hard if you're not
clear-headed. And that's what they're counting on. >> [music] >> Hearing someone you love screaming for
help, that panic that you feel isn't a side effect of the scam, it's the whole point.
So, what can we do? Here is what the FBI told us. And every situation is different, so there is no
perfect playbook for [music] it. But if you think your loved one is in real danger, call 911. If it turns out
to be a scam, you'll sort that out after. When in doubt, call. At the same time, you have to try to stay calm and
slow down. The entire scam >> [music] >> runs on your fear. They need you scared,
they need you reacting and moving fast for it to work. They don't want you questioning their story. But these calls
are about money, and as long as they think that there is a chance you'll pay, they will probably stay on the line. So,
use that time. Reach out to your loved one on a separate device using a number that you already have, not one that the
caller gives you. Now, if you're with someone, have them do it while you keep the caller talking. That's how
Jennifer's situation ended as quickly as it did. >> [music] >> According to the National Cybersecurity
Alliance, you can also try asking the caller to switch to a video call. Most scammers don't have both a voice clone
and a video deepfake ready at once. >> [music] >> At least not yet. But even that won't be foolproof
forever. And if they send you anything, photos, audio, proof of life, screenshot
it or save it before it disappears because it may be the only evidence they leave behind. But you know what they
say, an ounce of prevention [music] is worth a pound of cure. And the biggest thing, like the thing you should do
today, the second you're done listening to this episode, is to set up a safe word, a specific word or phrase that
only your circle knows that you can demand if you ever get that call. Don't pick something obvious or easy to
find out. No one's pets' names or birthdays or anything like that. Choose something that would be completely
meaningless to a stranger. Hany Farid, a professor at UC Berkeley who specializes
in digital forensics and misinformation, told Scientific American that he has a code word with his wife. And his advice
was to test each other on it occasionally because, unlike a password, you won't use it often enough for it to
stay fresh in your head. And you want it to be muscle memory when an emergency, real or fake, hits. Also, be sure to
keep the word [music] private. Share it in person or through encrypted channels only. And don't ever post anything
online that could give it away. I mean, I go an extra step further. We don't even say our word near our phones. Just
some friendly advice from me. Your apps are listening. [music] Now, if this happens to you, report it
as soon as possible, no matter how it ends. Even if you never sent a dollar, even if you figured it out within
seconds, that information matters. If money changes hands, contact your local FBI field office or call
1-800-CALL-FBI. [music] If there was no financial loss, you should still file a report at IC3.gov.
Local police response to these calls can be inconsistent. Jennifer found that out
firsthand. But IC3 makes sure the data gets to the right people. Either way, include everything you have. Phone
numbers, audio, screenshots, payment details. >> [music] >> Investigators can't track a threat that
they don't know exists. And every report, loss or no loss, helps them spot patterns, warn the public, and start
disrupting the networks behind this. You should also share this episode with your loved ones, especially anyone who
might be more vulnerable to a call like this. And you guys, talk about it. Because honestly, one of the strongest
defenses your family has is the conversation you have now, before the phone rings, before the terror takes
over, and before someone on the other end turns a voice that you trust into a weapon.
>> Meow.

What would you do if you answered the phone… and heard your child begging for help? In January 2023, Jennifer DeStefano received a call while standing outside a dance studio in Scottsdale, Arizona. On the other end was what sounded exactly like her 15-year-old daughter, Brianna, crying and pleading for help. Then a man took the phone. He claimed Brianna had been kidnapped, demanded ransom money, and threatened to kill them both if Jennifer contacted police. But Brianna was never actually taken.

In this special episode, Ashley Flowers investigates the terrifying rise of AI voice cloning scams and so-called virtual kidnappings, crimes that are happening right now across the United States.

You’ll hear Jennifer DeStefano’s firsthand account of the 2023 AI kidnapping scam, how scammers used artificial intelligence to replicate Brianna’s voice, the disturbing evolution of AI-generated emergency scams, why law enforcement says these crimes are becoming more common, and the one simple step experts say every family should take immediately

This episode also explores how little audio scammers need to clone a voice, the role of spoofed caller IDs and AI-generated conversations, FBI warnings about “proof-of-life” deepfake images, and how these scams are impacting victims emotionally, even when no money changes hands

This isn’t science fiction anymore. And after hearing this episode, you may never listen to a phone call the same way again. -------- Follow Crime Junkie: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crimejunkiepodcast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CrimeJunkiePodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/CrimeJunkiePod Crime Junkie is created and hosted by Ashley Flowers.

About Ashley Flowers Ashley Flowers is the top female podcaster in the U.S. and the host of Crime Junkie, the #1 podcast among women and the #1 true crime podcast globally. As the Founder of Audiochuck, she has built a top-tier podcast production company that has garnered over 2.6 billion downloads, captivating audiences with its gripping storytelling through 10+ chart topping podcasts. Ashley and her team are dedicated to creating responsible true crime content that respects victims and their families.

Follow Ashley: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ASHLEYFLOWERS/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ash_flowers TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ashleyflowerscrimejunkie Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashleyflowers.af/

Check out these other great crime channels: @annieelise Mackenzie Joking with Her Friends While in Jail | Mackenzie Shirilla Jail Calls https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeP6Ji7CDq4 @kallmekris The Infamous Mushroom Murders https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8pVjvOQbkQ @KendallRae Alaskan Teen Snatched By Killer Cop? The Murder Of Sonya Ivanoff https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qm0qp68e98E @rottenmangopod Everyone The Internet Believes Helped D4vd Cover Up His Crimes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_xl734-qFk

Brief Summary

Jennifer DeStefano's daughter was impersonated in a terrifying AI voice cloning scam demanding ransom.

Key points

A Mother's Nightmare. Jennifer receives a call from a kidnapper claiming to have her daughter Breonna.
The Price of Fear. The kidnapper demands a ransom of $1 million, then lowers it to $50,000.
The AI Threat. Jennifer learns about the rise of AI voice cloning scams targeting families.
Testifying Against AI Scams. Jennifer testifies before the US Senate Judiciary Committee about her traumatic experience.
The Evolving Scam Landscape. The FBI warns about the increasing sophistication of virtual kidnapping scams.
Setting Up a Safe Word. Establish a unique code word with your loved ones to verify identity during suspicious calls.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

This is about something that's happening right now to real people.

Introduction to the story's urgency

0:18WatchJun 3, 2026

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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