Carlee Russell Arrested On 2 Misdemeanor Charges After Admitting Kidnapping Hoax

Carlee Russell is facing legal trouble for faking her kidnapping. The Alabama nursing student was arrested on two misdemeanor charges days after she admitted to police through a statement from her lawyer that she was not abducted as she had previously claimed. Hoover Police Chief Nicholas C. Derzis told reporters in a press conference on Friday that Russell turned herself in and was later released after posting bond. According to Derzis, the 26-year-old faces two charges: false reporting to law enforcement authorities and falsely reporting an incident. Each charge carries up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $6,000 upon conviction, Derzis said. Russell made headlines earlier this month after calling 911 to report an unaccompanied toddler walking along the highway in a diaper. Per NBC News, authorities arrived at the location to find Russell’s car still running with her personal items inside, but she was not seen again until returning to her parents’ house two days later. The alleged child was never accounted for. A wide-ranging search for Russell took place over the 49 hours she was missing, and police said she claimed to detectives that she was taken and held captive during that time before allegedly escaping through the woods. Earlier this week, Derzis read a statement from Russell’s lawyer in which Russell confessed to fabricating the incident. “There was no kidnapping on Thursday, July 13, 2023. My client did not see a baby on the side of the road. My client did not leave the Hoover area when she was identified as a missing person,” the statement read, adding, “This was a single act done by herself. My client was not with anyone or any hotel with anyone from the time she was missing. My client apologizes for her actions to this community, the volunteers who were searching for her, to the Hoover Police department and other agencies as well, [and] to her friends and family.”