Fake call had local woman convinced kidnappers had her granddaughter

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - Imagine a stranger calling you, telling you they have kidnapped your granddaughter?

A local woman says she received a call over the weekend from someone who led her to believe her granddaughter was kidnapped and requested a ransom to get her back.

Aida Cordova-Escalante's mother is the victim of this frightful phone call.

Cordova's mother was led to believe that Cordova's daughter was kidnapped, and she could only get her back if she paid them $5,000.

She says the phone call came from Mexico, and the man on the line spoke Spanish.

The eerie part was when the caller began using the woman's actual name and even referenced her granddaughter by her name as well.

The woman was led to believe this was all true when the supposed kidnapper put a child on the line, who began screaming for her life.

Cordova says her father was with her mother when this was all happening, but he did not know what was going on.

He knew she was on the phone with someone but had no idea the person on the other line was threatening his wife.

After a drive around town to try to get the money, the couple ended up at a Del Sol where a worker recognized the frantic behavior and refused to service them.

The worker told Cordova's father that others have already been in a similar situation and she should hang up the phone.

But a scared grandmother refused to do so, and was told by the caller to go to Walmart to transfer the money.

Instead, Cordova's father drove straight to Cordova's house, and when he arrived he asked where his granddaughter was. She was in her room all along.

Cordova said she took the phone from her mother and heard herself, the mistreatment and vulgar language the person on the other line was used to control her mother, so she hung up.

The family says they tried to report this incident to the police, but because no actual funds were transferred there was nothing they can really do.

The Yuma County Sheriffs Department is aware of these types of phone calls happening within the community and advises those to always contact law enforcement when receiving these calls.