The Hoover Police Department held a press conference Wednesday, indicating that it has seen no evidence to support Carlee Russell's claims that she was kidnapped last week after pulling over on an Alabama highway in an attempt to help a toddler she allegedly saw wandering alone near the Interstate. Russell went missing shortly after she called 911 to report seeing the toddler, prompting an intense search that ended not with authorities rescuing her but with her suddenly reappearing at home on foot two days later.
Not only that, but police also have confirmed that no one else reported seeing a toddler on the highway that night or reported a toddler missing. Upon her return, she reportedly claimed that a man with "orange hair" and a bald spot had taken her and put her into a truck. That man's existence has not been proven.
The strange circumstances surrounding the case have led many to speculate that the entire kidnapping story was a hoax engineered by Russell herself. Her boyfriend has even deleted the Instagram post after Carlee returned home in which he claimed she had been fighting for her life.
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Police have not been able to verify details from Russell's story.
During the press conference, police did not go so far as to officially admit that Russell's claims of being abducted were made up but offered a timeline of her movements last Thursday — the night she went missing — based on surveillance footage uncovered in their investigation, which reveals some strange behaviors.
Hoover police also confirmed there was no toddler ever on the highway that night and revealed that the US Secret Service is involved in the investigation and uncovered a Google search history it believes is related to Russell's case and indicates a plot to fake her disappearance. Those internet searches include these terms:
- Do you have to pay for an amber alert
- How to take money from a register without being caught
- Birmingham bus station
- One way bus ticket from Birmingham to Nashville
- The movie "Taken"
- Maximum age of an amber alert
The 911 tape has been released.
Russell clearly stated that she could see the child, which at this point already has been proven false. The transcript reads in part as follows:
911: "Okay, they’re walking southbound … about how old do they look?"
Russell: "Um, like a toddler. Uh, maybe like 3 or 4."
911: "Did you pull over with them? Are you still with them? Are you with the child right now?"
Russell: "No, I am not. I’m still in the car. I can see them, though."
911: "Do you mind staying there until we can get there?"
Russell: "Yeah, yeah, sure, yeah."
Innocent until proven guilty. Or not?
Nearly from the beginning of the entire ordeal, people have speculated on the validity of Russell's claims, and those suspicions have only increased since she returned home on Saturday night just over 48 hours after she initially disappeared.
In the hours since the press conference, many have wondered why Russell has not been charged with a crime and whether she will be in the coming days. However, the question remains: Did she commit a criminal offense?
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Police say they are still investigating whether Russell committed a crime.
During the press conference, Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis asserted that the investigation is ongoing and that the department has requested another interview with Russell, which has not yet been granted.
"It is a little frustrating to think that all this has been done and we can't find anything out," he said during the press conference.
According to a legal expert who spoke with WVTM 13, Russell could face charges related to filing a false report.
"The statute actually goes a little further than that because it puts into it a person that files a false report or causes a false report to be filed," attorney Richard Jaffe said, estimating that Russell's claims and the subsequent search and investigation could cost as much as six figures.
“If someone misled authorities, causing them to expend tens of thousand dollars in tax money … there are certainly civil penalties that would occur,” he said. “Ultimately, I think the truth will be revealed.”
Russell's family has maintained their stance that she was kidnapped.
They have not offered any information, however, to prove that she was or that there was ever a toddler on the highway.
"Please understand our mental state and the anguish we have just experienced and that Carlee is still dealing with and understand that no matter how many demands or false narratives that are produced we will not be bullied into doing anything that will compromise our daughters mental well being or the investigation," her mother, Talitha Russell, relayed in a statement on Monday.
Her boyfriend, however, is backpedaling.
After Carlee's return home on Saturday, her boyfriend, Thomar Simmons, posted a heartfelt message on Instagram thanking the public for their help and support and claiming that Carlee was abducted and had been fighting for her life for those two days. But, in the wake of the Wednesday press conference, Simmons has deleted that post.
