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Jon Dunn and Tonya Papanikolas Reporting"It was portrayed that he was near death. That was all they thought about."
A new Life Flight scam is taking off in the valley with people impersonating law enforcement or Life Flight officials to steal money. The hoax is conducted over the telephone, where the impersonators make up a story about a serious accident and then take advantage of a family's emotional state.
Now local officials and the FBI are warning the public about the scam.
Sara Mower, Scam Victim: "Rob my house, steal my credit card, but don't tell me my family member's dead."
Sara Mower got a call from someone claiming to be the Utah Highway Patrol. They said her brother had been in a serious car accident
Sara Mower, Scam Victim: "That he was in critical condition and needed to be Life-Flighted."
A supposed nurse joined the call to give additional details.
Sara Mower, Scam Victim: "She said to me before life flight can take off, we need you to transfer 950 dollars through western union as a co-pay."
When someone is flown in a Life Flight or Air-med helicopter, they are usually in very serious or critical condition. In this case, Mower was told her brother was near death so she didn't think twice about the money.
She hung up and started calling family members. News eventually reached a person who was with the man supposedly injured. When the family realized the brother was fine, they also realized the phone call was a hoax. Thankfully, they hadn't wired any money yet. But it was still caused a lot of emotional stress.
Kent Johnson: "I think that was the hardest thing for them, that they went through this period thinking this family person was in a near-death situation, and that's a hard thing to get over."
Life Flight spokesman Jess Gomez says the person making the call likely has stolen the individual's cell phone and found the family member who receives the call in the contact list. The scammer then apparently says the person on the other end of the line needs to give his or her credit card number so the loved one can be flown to the hospital.
Bill Butts, Director of Operations, Intermountain Life Flight: "My concern is that people would think this would be a legitimate way for us to do business, and it certainly is not."
It's hard to think clearly when faced with such a shock, so the Mowers want to warn other families.
Sara Mower, Scam Victim: "I think it's horrible someone would put anyone through that over 900 dollars."
Life Flight wants people to know they never ask for money up front before transporting someone. They also say this scam seemed well-planned, so it's probably not a one time deal.
In fact, the FBI says they're looking into the hoax to see if it's something happening just here in the valley or all across the country. They're warning people to never give out personal information over the phone.
