Sources: 16-Year-Old Karol Sanchez Confesses To Staging Kidnapping That Prompted Amber Alert
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A 16-year-old girl who was apparently kidnapped right in front of her mother staged the whole thing, sources told CBS2.
The apparent kidnapping in the Bronx was staged by Karol Sanchez, who allegedly confessed to it after being reunited with her family Tuesday.
WE HAVE A VICTORY TODAY !! Karol has been found !!! Thank you to all who have worked very hard to track down the people involved in this case !!! pic.twitter.com/TYD7IlU49N
— NYPD 40th Precinct (@NYPD40Pct) December 17, 2019
No charges have been filed at this time, but police are looking for four male accomplices.
The surveillance video would send chills through any parent: Four men snatching a 16-year-old off a Bronx Street.
Blurry video showed the scene in the Melrose section of the Bronx near 775 Eagle Ave. at 11:30 p.m. Monday.
The video shows four men in a sedan pull up to Sanchez and her mother, grab the girl and push the mom to the ground.
The NYPD put out an Amber Alert and flooded the neighborhood with missing posters.
At 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sanchez suddenly showed back up at the scene and turned herself into police as stunned people on the street watched.
"We was at the pole over there, looking at her picture, and we walked up the block, she was crossing the street to to the the cop car, and I was like 'Yo, that's her right there,'" said Tommy Feliciano.
"She was shaken up. She was bending over, grabbing her knees, and discussing with the police. And that's when they took her into the parking garage for questioning," Zani Koxha said.
Sanchez was brought to the 40th Precinct stationhouse, where, sources tell CBS2, she admitted she staged the whole thing with four accomplices in an attempt to run away from her family.
The NYPD wants to talk to all involved before deciding who, if anyone, to charge.
**UPDATE** Karol Sanchez has been located in the Bronx, she is safe and unharmed. Great work by the @NYPDnews and all of our federal partners. Thank you to everyone in the community for your assistance.
— Chief Kenneth Corey (@NYPDChiefOfDept) December 17, 2019
All day, residents had worried about Sanchez, and kept a close eye on their own children. They worried about Sanchez's mother. Witnesses say she was distraught Monday night after her daughter was driven away.
"She was just screaming 'My daughter, my daughter, my God, someone please help me.' She was screaming hysterically. And I was looking, wondering what was going on. She was just screaming in the street," one witness said.
Sanchez and her family live in Dutchess County but have been visiting relatives in the Bronx.