Teen Who Faked Own Abduction Sentenced To Probation, Must Pay $15K For Search
MONROE (WWJ) - A young woman who admitted she faked her own disappearance and even put an ad on Craigslist to find an "abductor" has been placed on probation for three years.
Hayley Turner, 18, of Temperance, didn't apologize or offer any explanation for her actions as she faced Monroe Circuit Court Judge Daniel White, Thursday afternoon.
"Anything you want to say for yourself," Judge White asked Turner.
"No your honor," she said.
"This is a serious charge," the judge said. "I don't know if this was a cry for help, but I can tell you it was crying wolf."
In addition to probation, White sentenced Turner to one day in jail time served and 29 days community service.
She must also pay $15,000 to reimburse the sheriff's office for the 16-hour search.
Turner last mont pleaded guilty to causing a false police report to be filed — a crime that could have landed her behind bars for four years.
Turner claimed she was abducted Aug. 7, just north of Ohio in Bedford Township, after she called a friend to say she was going to stop and check on a man laying in a ditch at Dean and Crabb roads. Seconds later, police said, Turner told her friend, 'He has a gun' and the phone was disconnected.
Several law enforcement agencies searched for Turner until, the following day, a local resident spotted her "standing on a street corner, partially clothed, and holding a puppy," according to prosecutors.
Turner initially claimed she'd jumped out of a moving car to escape her abductors, but — after investigators later determined that no abduction had occurred — she eventually confessed to the lie.
Authorities have not disclosed a possible motive for the lie and details regarding where Turner might have been that night have not been made public.