WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — A reported kidnapping in West Palm Beach late Tuesday night took a turn when investigators determined the incident never happened, leading to the arrest of the woman who made the claim, police said.
The West Palm Beach Police Department said officers were called shortly before midnight on May 12 to a local hospital after Jessica Marie Meacham told them she had been abducted by two unknown men at a business along North Dixie Highway, off Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard. The report prompted an immediate response as detectives worked to piece together what had happened.
But as investigators began looking into the case, they ran into problems confirming Meacham’s story. Surveillance footage from the area did not show any evidence of a kidnapping, and detectives were unable to place Meacham or her vehicle at the location she described, according to the news release.
As the investigation continued, police said Meacham’s account began to fall apart. During a follow-up interview, she admitted she made the story up because she was afraid of going to jail…