Walmart kidnapping was a hoax for social media attention
- 6 years ago
CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, VIRGINIA — Turns out the a Virginia Walmart kidnapping incident was actually a hoax for social media attention.
According to the witnesses, a seafoam green sedan stopped at a Walmart in Midlothian, a man then walked over to open one of the car doors, that's when the trunk popped open and a young woman jumped out of the vehicle and ran off.
Two men then ran out to go after the woman, after recapturing her, they forced her back into the car and sped off.
On Monday, police released information about the incident and surveillance photos of the female and the males involved in the kidnapping.
Strangely, the woman who was kidnapped and one of her kidnappers walked into the police station to confess the whole thing was a actually hoax, and she came to the station in her vehicle, which was the vehicle used in the apparent kidnap.
Turns out that the female and the four males, who are all either 19 or 20 years old, know each other, after eating dinner nearby the Walmart, the group went to the back of Walmart to plan the whole thing. They planned to film the staged abduction and the reaction of onlookers and post the video on social media.
Police said many manpower hours were spent on investigating the "abduction", and now they are not ruling out charges against the group, Chester Police captain Jay Thornton said it could be anything ranging from a summons type offense to a lower misdemeanor.
Thornton also said that it's they are glad that this whole thing was just a planned event and not something that could have become tragic.
According to the witnesses, a seafoam green sedan stopped at a Walmart in Midlothian, a man then walked over to open one of the car doors, that's when the trunk popped open and a young woman jumped out of the vehicle and ran off.
Two men then ran out to go after the woman, after recapturing her, they forced her back into the car and sped off.
On Monday, police released information about the incident and surveillance photos of the female and the males involved in the kidnapping.
Strangely, the woman who was kidnapped and one of her kidnappers walked into the police station to confess the whole thing was a actually hoax, and she came to the station in her vehicle, which was the vehicle used in the apparent kidnap.
Turns out that the female and the four males, who are all either 19 or 20 years old, know each other, after eating dinner nearby the Walmart, the group went to the back of Walmart to plan the whole thing. They planned to film the staged abduction and the reaction of onlookers and post the video on social media.
Police said many manpower hours were spent on investigating the "abduction", and now they are not ruling out charges against the group, Chester Police captain Jay Thornton said it could be anything ranging from a summons type offense to a lower misdemeanor.
Thornton also said that it's they are glad that this whole thing was just a planned event and not something that could have become tragic.