Tiffin woman warns of phone scam: ‘I am shaking still’

A Tiffin woman is warning of a phone scam that has left her “shaking.”

“I am so upset. Someone called my mom and said they were my son Kaleb,” Kelli Ferguson Luidhardt said in a viral Facebook post.

“They said they needed $8000 to for bail. They claimed they had been in a auto accident and was in Toledo jail. My mom said call your mom I do not have that kind of money. Caller said that they would let him go for $2000. My mom said for him to call me,” Luidhardt continued.

Luidhardt said the caller told her mother that her son could not call Luidhardt because “she will be pissed.”

“My mom said Kaleb I do not have that kind of money. Caller said grandma I am going to go to jail and cried,” Luidhardt said. “My mom said Kaleb this doesn’t sound like you. Caller said grandma my nose is broke and I have glass in my lip My mom said I do not have the money. Caller hung up.”

Luidhardt said her son was with her husband at work and that she spoke with both of them.

“Someone who knows us is making calls to frighten my family or to scam us out of money. I am shaking still,” Luidhardt said.

“To hear your child is hurt… I will find out who this is and they are in big trouble. I am calling the police,” Luidhardt exclaimed.

The Federal Trade Commission says if you’ve lost money to a phone scam or have information about the company or scammer who called you, report it at ftc.gov/complaint.

If you didn’t lose money and just want to report a call, you can use their streamlined reporting form at donotcall.gov.

Report the number that appears on your caller ID — even if you think it might be fake — and any number you’re told to call back.

The FTC analyzes complaint data and trends to identify illegal callers based on calling patterns. They also use additional information you report, like any names or numbers you’re told to call back, to track down scammers.