Authorities stated Monday that Carlee Russell, the missing Alabama woman who recounted a story about seeing a child on the side of a highway and then being abducted, lied about the entire incident.
Police Chief Nicholas Derzis informed reporters that Russell’s attorney, Emery Anthony, had submitted a letter to the Hoover Police Department saying his client acknowledged that she had not seen a toddler on the road and was not a missing person.
The attorney for the accused said that his client extends her most profound apologies to the citizens of Hoover, the volunteers who helped in the hunt for her, friends and family, the Hoover Police Department, and other agencies.
Authorities said that Russell, 25, disappeared after calling 911 on the evening of July 13 and reporting that she had seen a small child wandering southbound on Interstate 459 near Birmingham.
According to reports, Russell purportedly took toilet paper and a bathrobe from her job at the Woodhouse Spa Birmingham before shopping at Target and getting dinner. She then contacted 911 from Interstate 495.
She reappeared in public on July 15th.
In a police interview, she stated an orange-haired guy came from a wooded area to retrieve the child, but he snatched Russell up and had her jump over a fence. She alleged he pushed her into an 18-wheel trailer. She stated she escaped the truck but was caught again and put in a vehicle. She said she had been taken to a residence, made to strip, blindfolded, and photographed. She also informed investigators she had no sexual interaction with them.
Officials claimed surveillance footage showed Russell walking on the sidewalk before going to her residence on July 15, and police never located a child on a freeway.
According to Russell’s Life 360 app, Russell walked a total of 600 yards while calling 911.
According to a report, Jefferson County Chief Assistant District Attorney Lane Tolbert said that charges of false reporting to law enforcement officials and fraudulently reporting an event are being considered against Russell.
