Young man fakes kidnapping, demands $27,000 from his mother... all from a hotel.

An unusual tip-off triggered the mobilization of police forces in northern Guayaquil in the early hours of Tuesday, August 5. A woman was arrested for pretending to have been kidnapped and demanding that her mother pay $27,000 for her presumed release.

The incident was reported around 4:00 a.m., when the girl's mother showed up at the police station, distraught. She reported that her daughter, who had left home the previous day, August 4, at 5:50 p.m. in a private car, had disappeared without a trace.

A few hours later, a friend of the alleged victim contacted the mother to inform her that the young woman might be at risk. He asked her to go to a hotel located on Francisco de Orellana Avenue, given that was the last location the victim had provided.

According to the story, the alleged kidnappers threatened to harm him if the requested amount was not paid by noon on August 5.

After being notified, police officers conducted an operation at the aforementioned hotel. At the scene, they found the young woman unharmed and safe , with no signs of having been held against her will.

According to the official report, the woman is suspected of staging the fake kidnapping to extort money from her mother. She was arrested at the scene, and her cell phone, which was allegedly used to make the calls and send threatening messages, was confiscated.

The Ecuadorian citizen was handed over to authorities for allegedly committing the crime of simulating a criminal offense , as established in Article 272 of the Comprehensive Organic Criminal Code (COIP).