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The teen had taken the car belonging to Mercida Landron in the early morning hours of April 7 to pick up his girlfriend in Jersey City, Capt. Francesco Aquila said.
New Jersey State Police recovered the vehicle, he said.
The teen told Hackensack police at headquarters that a carjacker put a gun to the back of his neck, ordered him out of the vehicle and took the car, Aqula said.
As detectives were completing their investigation, both Landron and her son apologized on Thursday, the captain said.
She was charged with obstruction of justice and lying to law enforcement. A delinquency complaint was signed against her son for the same offenses.
"This incident serves as a reminder to the public to be truthful when reporting matters to law enforcement officials or face criminal charges," Aquila said. "The police resources, time and manpower utilized during this investigation was expansive and could have been directed towards other priority investigations that held validity."
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