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GENERAL ENGLISH · BREAKING NEWS · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

AUSTRALIAN MAN
FAKES OWN
KIDNAPPING TO
SEE LOVER
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1 Warm up
Have you ever heard a story about someone faking their kidnapping?

Can you think of any reasons why someone would pretend to be kidnapped? Make a list in pairs.

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AUSTRALIAN MAN FAKES OWN KIDNAPPING TO SEE LOVER

2 Listening

Listen to the news report and discuss the questions below in pairs.

1. Who did Paul tell his wife he was going to meet with on New Year’s Eve? →

2. What did the ‘kidnapper’ demand in return for Paul’s freedom? →

3. How many hours did the police spend searching for Paul? →

4. Did Paul’s partner forgive him? →

3 Vocabulary

Read the sentences below. Match the underlined words and phrases to their meanings. Then tell a
partner whether the sentences are true for you.

• I find it suspicious when a company calls me and asks for personal information.
• There is not much else to do in Las Vegas apart from going to their famous casinos.
• Security footage should be available for anyone to watch, not just the police.
• There is too much personal information that can be tracked online.
• Regardless of what you’ve done, confessing to have made a mistake is always better than lying
about it.
• Alleged crimes that turn out to be false should be punished.
• Companies are more likely to be helpful when someone threatens to take legal action.
• I think online betting should be banned.
• No one withdraws cash anymore, everyone just uses their card.

1. risk money on something you think will happen in order to win more money =

2. a recording of an event taken by camera =

3. something that someone says has happened without proof =

4. feeling that something seems wrong =

5. admit to doing something wrong =

6. find someone or something by looking for proof they were there or using technology =

7. take money out of a bank =

8. a place where games are played for money =

9. say you will cause someone harm if they don’t do what you want =

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AUSTRALIAN MAN FAKES OWN KIDNAPPING TO SEE LOVER

4 Reading 1
Read the article about four fake kidnappings. Are these sentences true or false?

Four fake kidnappings

As unusual as the Australian man’s story may seem, it was certainly not the first fake kidnapping to
make the news. Here are four more stories that became headlines for different reasons.

Text A

Rogelio Andaverde was at home with his wife Maria Hernandez when two men broke in and kidnapped him.
Worried about her husband, Maria called the police and told them what happened. The officers searched for
Rogelio, but with no success; he was nowhere to be seen. Finally, after two days, the kidnappers changed their
mind and let him go and he was able to safely return home to his wife. At least that’s the story Rogelio told Maria
and the police. After further investigation, the police found out that Rogelio wanted to attend a party with his
friends but thought Maria would not let him go, so he asked his friends to ‘kidnap’ him.

Text B

In 2013, Rahmell Pettway went missing for two weeks and was found by a stranger on a random street with his
legs and arms tied up with tape. When the police officers arrived, Pettway made it seem as though he had been
beaten up so he was rushed to hospital. There, the officers realised the story Pettway had told was a lie. The
tape roll used to tie him up was still on his wrist, an indication that he had tied himself up. As it turned out, he
had disappeared for two weeks and just needed an excuse to tell his girlfriend, because he knew just showing up
home after such a long time would be too suspicious.

Text C

In February 2018, Jonathon Davis’s relatives received messages informing them of his kidnapping. The ‘kidnappers’
threatened to hurt Jonathon if the family did not give them $375. To show how serious they were, they sent a
picture of Jonathon’s hand with a broken finger. The family desperately contacted the police, who even involved
the FBI. They quickly noticed the messages had been sent from Jonathon’s phone. After tracking the device, they
found the missing man in a casino: he needed the money for betting. Luckily for Jonathon, his finger was in perfect
shape - the picture sent had been found online.

Text D

Another easy case for the police to crack was that of Hillary Black. She informed the police that she was getting
cash from an ATM machine when a man forced her to get back into her car and drive to a shopping centre. There,
he robbed the money she had just withdrawn. The police became suspicious after they noticed that the shopping
centre Hillary mentioned did not exist. What Hillary had not accounted for was the fact that there was security
footage near the ATM. She was still insisting on her story when the police showed her the video of herself alone
at the alleged crime scene. She had no choice but to confess her lies.

Sources: Listverse, CNN, Life The Philippine Star

1. All of the texts mention the reason why they faked their own kidnapping.

2. The kidnappers always asked for something in return for the missing person.

3. Only one person had help from others to carry out their plan.

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5 Reading 2

In which of the text(s) about the fake kidnappings can you find ...

1. a person who lied to their partner? →

2. someone who was found by the police? →

3. video proof of the crime? →

4. technology helping the police solve the crime? →

5. the reason why they decided to go missing? →

6. involvement of other authorities? →

7. someone who went missing for a fortnight? →

8. someone who was taken from their home? →

6 Speaking

In pairs, create three different dialogues and role play the following scenarios from Paul Iera’s news
story:

1. Paul Iera telling his wife about his New Year’s Eve plans.
2. Paul Iera’s wife talking to the police.
3. Paul Iera explaining to the judge what happened and the judge giving Paul’s sentence in court.

7 Talking point

In pairs, discuss the questions below.

1. Out of all the five fake kidnappings, which one was more believable?
2. Which of the five fake kidnappings was the easiest to solve?
3. Would you fake your own kidnapping? If so, how would you do it?
4. Do you think Paul’s sentencing was reasonable?
5. Would you have forgiven Paul if you were his partner?

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AUSTRALIAN MAN FAKES OWN KIDNAPPING TO SEE LOVER

8 Grammar

Read the Grammar Box and find seven more examples of past perfect sentences in the text.

Grammar Box

Past Perfect

We use the past perfect to describe an action that was completed before another action
(in the past simple) or a specific time in the past.

When the police officers arrived, Pettway made it seem as though he had been beaten up so he
was rushed to hospital.

Now complete the sentences from the text with the correct form of the verbs in the box. Then check
your answers in the text.

not account for / disappear / find / send / tell / tie / withdraw

1. There, the officers realised the story Pettway was a lie.

2. The tape roll used to tie him up was still on his wrist, an indication that he himself
up.

3. As it turned out, he for two weeks and just needed an excuse to tell his girlfriend

4. They quickly noticed the messages from Jonathon’s phone.

5. Luckily for Jonathon, his finger was in perfect shape - the picture sent online.

6. There, he robbed the money she .

7. What Hillary for was the fact that there was security footage near the ATM.

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AUSTRALIAN MAN FAKES OWN KIDNAPPING TO SEE LOVER

9 Extension activity 1

Match the sentences to the crimes below.

1. Arson a. watching or following someone over time, in a way that

makes them scared or annoyed
2. Robbery b. attempting to pay someone in order to persuade them to do
something, which is often illegal
3. Pickpocketing c. stealing goods or money from someone or somewhere

4. Bribery d. stealing something out of someone’s pockets or bags

without them noticing
5. Stalking e. setting fire to something in order to cause damage or
destruction and / or receive insurance money

10 Extension activity 2

In small groups, write a script of a news report and record a video. It may be about a fake kidnapping
or one of the crimes mentioned above.

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