Dutchess County resident Karol Sanchez, 16, an Arlington High School student, was visiting relatives in the Bronx late on Monday, Dec. 16 when several African-American men pulled up to them in a car and abducted the teenager in front of her mother, who was pushed to the ground during the apparent kidnapping.
An Amber Alert was issued for the Poughquag resident, and a manhunt was launched late Monday that lasted into the following day.
Sanchez was reunited with her family at approximately 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 17, and turned herself in to police, where she repeatedly admitted the kidnapping was a hoax and she did it to be with her 23-year-old boyfriend and to get away from her strict mother.
According to the New York Post, her boyfriend - whose name has not been released - has a lengthy rap sheet that includes arrests for murder and attempted murder. Sanchez may have also been fighting a proposed move to her family’s native Honduras.
No charges have yet been filed against Sanchez. The investigation into the incident is ongoing, as detectives seek to track down her accomplices who helped stage the faux abduction.
"The investigation remains ongoing,” NYPD spokesperson Det. Denise Moroney, said in a statement.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Mahopac and receive free news updates.