A New York woman was arrested on Thursday after police say she falsely told them a child was in her car when it was taken.
According to police, 23-year-old Tiffany Obi left her car running while getting food in a Brooklyn neighborhood, but when she came out, her car was gone.
In an attempt to get a faster response, Obi allegedly told a 911 dispatcher that a 6-year-old relative was still in the back seat of her stolen 2008 Chrysler Pacifica, CBS New York reports.
Police reportedly prompted a search for the child and the vehicle, but when they found Obi’s car a few blocks away, there was no child inside. In fact, the child was safe and with family during the entire ordeal.
According to a complaint filed in Kings County Criminal Court, “The defendant falsely claimed the defendant’s vehicle was stolen with the defendant’s nephew inside of said vehicle so that the police would respond more quickly, and that the defendant had learned this technique from a class the defendant had taken in school.”
Obi was taken into custody on Thursday for filing a false police report and released without bail at her arraignment on Friday.
