Bodycam Shows Girl, 11, Arrested for Claiming Friend Was Kidnapped

An 11-year-old girl in Florida has been arrested after she told police falsely that her friend had been kidnapped.

Deputies with the Volusia Sheriff's Office (VSO), who operate 38 miles northeast of Orlando, were alerted to a report that a child had been kidnapped by an armed man driving a white van on South I-95 in Oak Hill at about 9:45 a.m. on Wednesday, July 26.

The girl, later identified as Ava Rose Langone, told deputies that her 14-year-old friend had been abducted and that she had been following in a blue Jeep. Several responded alongside police from Edgewater, New Smyrna Beach, and Port Orange to search for the suspect vehicle, but no one was able to find any trace of it.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System says that there are 1,726 open missing-persons cases in Florida. NamUS added that there were 2,196 resolved missing-persons cases in the Sunshine State.

A Wednesday, July 26 VSO Facebook post read: "For the next hour and a half, the girl texted updates including a description of the male suspect and that he had a gun.

"Ultimately, deputies were directed to a home in Port Orange by investigative means tracking the cell phone used to text 911.

"At 10:23 a.m., deputies arrived at the home on Poppy Lane and contacted the girl's father, who said she was inside with her family," the post added.

"As deputies approached the girl, she was holding her cell phone, which was ringing as she walked out to meet the deputies. When answered, Volusia Sheriff's Dispatch was on the line and deputies verified they were on scene."

When asked by deputies about the incident, Lagone told them she got the idea to prank 911 through a YouTube challenge and that it "would be funny."

In bodycam footage, Lagone was surrounded by deputies, with one saying the incident could be "a learning experience."

Sheriff Mike Chitwood said: "This kind of prank activity is dangerous: we're going to investigate every incident, but today it wasted valuable resources that might have helped someone else who legitimately needed our help."

Langone has since been charged with making a false police report concerning the use of a firearm in a violent manner, which is a felony; and misuse of 911, a misdemeanor.

Langone was then transported to the Family Resource Center for processing and then taken to the Volusia Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Daytona Beach.

Newsweek has contacted the VSO for comment via email.