Walton County, Fla., authorities said an investigation into an alleged abduction near Paxton ended Tuesday night when a 12-year-old girl admitted her story was made up.

 

The victim told authorities that sometime between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m., Tuesday she heard a noise inside her home near Paxton and went to investigate. She says it was then that a white male in his late teens to early 20s, standing around 5-feet-10 inches to 6-feet tall with sandy blonde, shaggy hair put his hands over her mouth and dragged her from the home into the bed of a blue pick-up truck outside.

 

The girl said the male got in the passenger side of the truck and another male was driving. The only description given for the driver of the vehicle was that he had brown hair.

 

The girl claimed to have stayed in the bed of the truck until sometime later when the vehicle slowed and she was able to jump out and enter the woods. She walked for several hours before finding a residence to call 911 approximately 4 miles from her home, WSCO officials said.

 

“At the time we felt like she was a credible witness and we had to go on what she was telling us,” said Sheriff Michael Adkinson. “Our primary concern is the health, welfare, and safety of our children. Hopefully now the people of Walton County will be able sleep easy.”

 

Walton County Sheriff’s Office encourages parents to talk to their children about the chance of these types of scenarios.