A Hillsborough County woman is speaking out after scammers used artificial intelligence to clone her daughter’s voice and con her out of $15,000 in a sophisticated hoax.

Sharon Brightwell said the terrifying scheme started last Wednesday with a call from a number that appeared to belong to her daughter. On the line, she heard a young woman sobbing and claiming she had been in a car accident.

“There is nobody who could convince me that it wasn’t her,” Sharon said. “I know my daughter’s cry.”

The caller claimed she had hit a pregnant woman while texting and driving, and that police had taken her phone. A man then came on the line, saying he was an attorney and that Sharon’s daughter was being held in jail. He demanded $15,000 in cash for bond and gave detailed instructions—telling Sharon not to tell the bank why she was withdrawing the money, warning it could impact her daughter’s credit.

Following his instructions, Sharon packed the cash in a box. A driver arrived at her home to pick it up.

But the scam didn’t end there.

Sharon got another call, this time claiming the pregnant woman had lost her baby. The scammers told her the family—described as “Christian people”—agreed not to press charges if she paid an additional $30,000.

That’s when Sharon’s grandson intervened. While speaking with a family friend, they contacted Sharon directly—this time with her real daughter on the phone.

“I screamed,” Sharon said. “When I heard her voice, I broke down. She was fine. She was still at work.”

The family suspects scammers used videos from social media to create a convincing AI-generated voice.

“I pray this doesn’t happen to anyone else,” Sharon said. “My husband and I are recently retired. That money was our savings.”

The family now urges others to take precautions, such as establishing a private code word for verifying emergencies over the phone.

“If they can’t give it to you,” Sharon said, “hang up and call them directly.”

A report has been filed with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. The family has also started a GoFundMe to help recover their losses.

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