Investigator: Hoax charges expected today

March 1, 2012

By COLLEEN MCCARTHY
sdnedu@bellsouth.net

The Mississippi State University student who authorities say falsely claimed she had been abducted from campus is expected to be charged with filing a false report today.
Shortly after midnight on Wednesday, the MSU Police Department received a call from a student who said her roommate called her and said she had been abducted while walking back to her residence in South Hall from the Mitchell Memorial Library. The university’s Maroon Alert system was initialized, and a text message alert was sent to students regarding the incident between 2 and 3 a.m.
Investigators would not comment on the exact details of the abduction claim, but later that morning MSU Police Chief Georgia Lindley said the student had been found and was safe, and the campus police department worked with the FBI on the case.
Later Wednesday, investigators said the student admitted to fabricating the abduction, and officials announced her story was a hoax.
Though it was unclear whether the student would face charges of filing a false report from the federal or local level, MSUPD Detective Brad Massey said Thursday the FBI has declined to press charges against the student, and campus police will file the charges today in Starkville. Massey said once the charges are filed, he will encourage the student to turn herself in.
The student has not been identified, but her name will become available once charges are filed and she is arrested.