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The Kidney Thieves are both the subjects and main antagonists of a common urban legend. While their country of origin varies from tale-to-tale, they are always depicted as a criminal organization using female decoys to trick men into going to their hotel rooms. Once there, they are promptly drugged, dragged to an unknown location, and have one of their kidneys removed to sell on the black market.
Biography
Usually, the legend takes place in a city or location seen as exotic or dangerous, with a seedy side that preys on unwary travelers. A tourist, usually male, sometimes on a business trip, is at a hotel when he meets an attractive woman. The woman flirts with the tourist and invites him to her room for drinks. The man accepts, but upon going to the woman's room he is given a drugged drink and passes out.
Some time later, the man awakens in a bathtub filled with ice; a large, fresh wound is in his side. Often, there is a phone next to the bathtub with a note that has some variation of the phrase "Call 911 immediately if you want to live.". The man does so, and is told by the operator that the woman he met was part of a gang of organ thieves who have stolen one his kidneys to sell on the black market. Most versions of the story say that the man is only the latest in a long line of victims of similar thefts.
Frequently, the story is set in cities like Las Vegas, New York City, New Orleans, Tijuana, Acapulco, Hong Kong, or Bangkok. In Latin America, similar stories exist saying that wealthy Americans adopt children from poorer families in order to harvest their organs.
Filipino versions of the urban legend are more commonly used as cautionary tales for children. Most of the time, the kidney thieves are said to drive vehicles around more developed parts of the country, luring children into their vehicles in order to harvest their organs. It's worth noting that this rendition of the legend shares striking similarities to other urban legends such as the Black Volga or the Black Ambulance.
