By Sarah Swain
Publication Date: 2026-05-11 06:37:00
When Sarah’s cat went missing and she received a message from someone claiming to have seen it, she was filled with hope.
They had used AI to create photos of a cat similar to their cat and were demanding money.
“If this happened to me, it will happen to someone else,” she told 9News.
16-year-old black cat Cinda escaped from Middle Street in Kingsford in Sydney at 9pm on May 5.
The person who contacted Sarah via email claimed to have “found” her.
They posted photos of what looked like the cat in a car and on a sofa.
But when Sarah questioned them further, they said they wanted $200, with part of that to be paid with an Apple gift card.
“They said, ‘I’ve spent the last of my money on her.’ They said, ‘Will you…
