Fake Kidnapping. Real Terror.
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Who is Jennifer DeStefano and what triggered her story?
This is exactly right. I'm Nancy Glass, host of the Burden of Guilt Season 3 podcast. This is a story about a horrendous situation that destroyed two families. It's a scorched earth war that shows just how far someone will go to get what they want.
Cindy said I had to choose between the truth and my family, and I had to choose the truth.
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Who lies about being this sick? This was the last time I ever believed a word she said.
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It's Chelsea Handler from Dear Chelsea. This season, we've got some awesome guests ready to dole out advice. Guests like Tiffany Haddish. Kind of slide into people's DMs. I like Bumble. Also, girl, FarmersOnly.com. Estate sales, funerals, auctions are usually good. There's a lot of good men there. Grocery stores near gyms. Darcy Carden, Sherry Oteri, Anna Faris, Dave Franco, Madeline Klein, Adam Scott, T.S. Madison, and more. Listen to Dear Chelsea on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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And this man gets on the phone and he goes, listen here, I have your daughter. If you call anybody, you call the police. I'm going to pop her stomach so full of drugs, have my way with her and drop her in Mexico and never see your daughter again.
Welcome to The Knife.
I'm Patia Eaton. I'm Hannah Smith. This week, we're speaking with Jennifer DiStefano. Jennifer is a mother of four living in Arizona. And one day in 2023, she received a phone call that brought her to her knees. Her daughter had been kidnapped, or at least that's what it seemed like.
As a result of that phone call, Jennifer has become outspoken about the risks of AI-generated fraud and has testified before Congress, urging the U.S. Senate to address the rising number of scams. Let's get into the interview. Hi, Jennifer. Thank you so much for taking the time to speak with me today.
Hi, thanks so much for having me. I really appreciate it.
Yeah, I came across your story. I immediately knew I wanted to talk to you on the show because you have had multiple experiences now with AI that actually led you to speaking to the U.S. Senate. And it's impacted you personally and your family. And I think it's such an important discussion for us to be having.
Thank you. Yeah, I really appreciate the bringing awareness to it too, so that hopefully it can help other people.
Yeah, let's start off with you just introducing yourself and maybe telling us a little bit about your life.
Sure. My name is Jennifer DiStefano. I'm a mother of four kids. I have two boys, two girls. My oldest is turning 21 and my youngest is 15. So they're pretty close in age and they keep me pretty busy.
That's awesome. You have four kids. You're brave. Yeah. So take me to this moment in time in your life just before this experience that we're going to get into.
So it was January of 2023. I have kids that like to compete in different types of sports that takes us all over the place. So I have some competitive winter athletes in snowboarding and ski racing. And then I have a dancer. And so she was preparing, my dancer was preparing for an upcoming competition. And my younger son and my daughter, Brianna, were both preparing for a obstacle course type of race course up north in the snow. My older son was down in the valley with me, as well as my younger daughter. And then my older daughter and my younger son were up at the mountain preparing for the ski races.
You may have seen ski racing during the Winter Olympics.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
Who is Jennifer DeStefano and what triggered her story?
0:01–10:08
2
How did the fake kidnapping phone call unfold and what did Jennifer hear?
10:08–18:45
3
What immediate actions did Jennifer take when she realized it might be a scam?
18:45–27:26
4
How did the surrounding parents and police respond to the emergency call?
27:26–36:49
5
What is AI voice cloning and how was it used in this kidnapping hoax?
36:49–45:12
6
How did a later campus “active shooter” hoax compound the trauma?
45:12–56:05
7
What legislative steps did Jennifer pursue after testifying before the Senate?
56:05–1:03:09