Neighbors Furious After Police Say Teen Made Up Kidnapping Story
By Tom Mustin
PARKER, Colo. (CBS4) - Parker police say the alleged kidnapping and attempted sexual assault of a 17-year-old girl last September never happened.
"Disappointed and very, very upsetting," said resident Randy Sherbon.
Parker residents didn't mince words after learning that the teen made up the entire episode.
"It really upsets me because our tax money has been put into the investigation and it's all a hoax," resident Ken Carrick told CBS4's Tom Mustin.
On Sept. 22, Parker police held a press conference saying the teen had been abducted from her home by several men who tried to sexually assault her in the Willow Park subdivision.
"She did not know these people, she did not know who would have done this," Officer Dawn Cashman told CBS4 at the time.
The FBI and CBI were called in to help with the case. Several thousand dollars in man hours were spent trying to locate the suspects. Wednesday police admitted the teen had made the story up.
"There's got to be other things going on in her life. We're not trying to vilify her," said Lt. Chris Peters. "But yeah, it is disappointing to have so many people concerned about something that didn't happen."
Peters says the teen will face misdemeanor charges of false reporting and may have to pay back expenses. He says the good news is the public is not in any danger.
Sherbon says regardless of the punishment, he and his neighbors are furious.
"If she wanted attention she could have talked to somebody about it, and we could have done something. We didn't have to go through this onslaught of nonsense," he said.
Carrick agrees.
"It really upsets me that a child like this would come up with a hoax like this. It says a lot about kids today," he said.
Parker police say they're tabulating the actual costs involved in the case. That information should be known in the next few days. Charges are expected to be filed against the teenager next week.
Tom Mustin is CBS4's Weekend Anchor. He has been with CBS4 since 2002, and is always looking for great story ideas. Connect with Tom on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @TomCBS4.
