Missing pets: Owners condemn 'despicably cruel' scammers

Rachel Mitson received scam calls after her dog Smudge went missing

Victims of a "despicably cruel" scam have urged dog and cat owners to be highly wary of callers offering to reunite them with their missing pets.

Criminals prey on them by often falsely claiming to have their animals before demanding cash for their safe return.

Responding to a recent BBC North West investigation which found scammers had been making threatening phone calls, more victims have spoken to BBC News.

Police also said they were dealing with hundreds of cases from across the UK.

Rachel Mitson, 37, was contacted after her dog Smudge went missing from her parents' home in Ipswich over the Christmas period in 2022.

"On Boxing Day, when he still hadn't been found, I received a phone call from a man who said he had him and if we wanted him back we would need to pay a large amount of money, I think it was around £2,000," she told BBC News.

"I was shocked and like any person in that position I was hoping that he did have my dog and that he had been found, but after thinking about it and getting advice from a police officer friend, we decided to ring the police.

"Happily, five days later, we got a phone call to tell us that a lady had found Smudge. I just can't believe vulnerable pet owners are getting scammed in this manner."

Pet cat Heathcliff was missing for two weeks before he was found by a neighbour

Helena Hamling, 31, received calls after her cat Heathcliff escaped from her home in Kirk Ella, East Yorkshire, in April 2023.

The HR worker shared appeals on social media and sent out leaflets with her telephone number included.

"Five days after Heathcliff escaped I got a call from a man saying he had found him," she said. "I was so relieved and was asking him for the address.

"He told me if I paid £500 he would take him to a local vets. He wanted £250 right away and another £250 after he dropped him off.

"He hold me if I rang the police I would never see my cat again. I tried to remain calm and desperately buy some time by saying I'd need to make some calls to get the money together. The scammer said I had half an hour."

Helena said the call left her "completely distraught" and added: "I wanted to pay the money as I couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to my cat, but was talked out of it."

Heathcliff was found safe and well two weeks later under a shed in a neighbour's garden.

"The whole thing was awful - to get someone's hopes up that your pet has been found safe, only then to threaten you is despicably cruel," Helena said.

Martin has yet to find his dog Flash who disappeared on a walk

Another victim, Martin, paid £500 to a scammer after he received calls about his missing dog Flash in 2022.

"A male caller told me that someone could bring me my dog in return for a finder's fee. He wanted £250 in advance and then another £250 by bank transfer once I'd got the dog."

The 56-year-old consultant from Cardiff, who did not want to divulge his full name, said he was told to wait in a supermarket car park at 11pm where he would be met by a man with his dog.

He said: "I was called and told they wanted the full payment first, I went back and forth with them and they threatened to throw my dog out of a moving car.

"I was 99% sure it was a scam but I paid in case there was the slightest likelihood of this being true."

Martin said when the man and his dog never turned up he contacted his bank and was helped by the fraud team.

Detectives in Cumbria are conducting a nationwide investigation into pet scam calls.

Operation Facade has so far identified more than 200 victims and last year one of the perpetrators was convicted of nine counts of blackmail and one of theft.

Brandon Woolveridge, 24 and previously from Barrow-in-Furness, was jailed for 44 months.

Brandon Woolveridge threatened to shoot a missing dog if his owner did not pay him £1,000

Diane James, head of the pet loss support service at national charity Blue Cross, said: "Sadly, in the current economic climate, criminals are using every opportunity they can to find ways to make money.

"We'd urge anyone with any suspicions about a person who has contacted them to trust their instincts, not pay any money or give any personal information, and to contact the police."

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