A San Tan Valley family fell victim to a scam that local law enforcement continues to warn about. It involves someone claiming to have your loved one held hostage for ransom.
"I fell on my knees and I just kept saying, 'No, what's happening right now?' I kept saying, 'What is happening?'" said Dana Artzer.
It was a terrifying phone call that sounded all too real.
"I didn't know anything and all I could do was pray," said Artzer.
ABC15 spoke with Artzer on Friday. She said that on the other end of the line, was who she thought was her eldest daughter, Ashley.
"My first instinct was, 'Wow, that doesn't sound like Ashley.' But, as soon as I realized that she was panicking... my mind, my head went to, 'She's panicking, of course it's not going to sound like her,'" said Artzer.
Artzer's youngest daughter put the call on speaker until she was told she had to be alone. A man on the phone told her that Ashley was being held hostage by the cartel and they had barricaded themselves in an apartment. Artzer said her youngest daughter was instructed to jump in her car and follow their requests.
At that point, Artzer believed both of her daughters were now in danger.
"I called the police to find out if there was any hostage situations locally and I was told no. And, I told him what was going on and they said, 'You know, it's a scam,'" said Artzer.
It was a hard concept for her to accept but she called her eldest daughter Ashley who was, in fact, safe at home. Artzer then began trying to get a hold of her other daughter who was still on the phone with the scammer.
"They said, 'We know that your car is stopped. Why aren't you going? You now have two minutes to get here before we kill your sister,'" said Artzer.
Ashley was ultimately able to FaceTime her sister, but the fear continued.
"As soon as she got done talking to her, she called us and she was hysterical. And she said, 'You know, they're following me. They know where I'm at,'" said Artzer.
Artzer met up with her youngest daughter and brought her home, with Ashley showing up shortly after. The family is still unsure exactly how the scammers found their personal information. But, police in Arizona have put out warnings over these types of scams in recent months. Now, the family is on a mission to help others.
"Just create awareness for people. Just, a safe word, the same word for everybody in your family," said Artzer.
