Woman Pleads Guilty in Amber Alert Hoax. A North Carolina woman has pleaded guilty in federal court to charges tied to the filing of a false Amber Alert for a 3-year-old boy who was not her son and was never missing.
According to the criminal complaint, Rosnah Hassan Thomason, 43, called officers with the Smithfield Police Department on May 18, 2008, and reported her 3-year-old son, Siraj Munir Davenport, missing. Thomason told police the boy had disappeared while she was loading produce in her car at the Brightleaf Flea Market.
Authorities searched the area but were unable to locate the child. As a result, an Amber Alert was issued and FBI agents were called in to assist.
From the start, investigators were suspicious of Thomason's claims. No one at the flea market remembered seeing her with a child, and a search of her residence turned up an Internet printout that detailed how to report a child missing.
On May 19, Thomason admitted she had lied about the details of her son's disappearance and told detectives that her brother, Kamarudin Hassan, had forced her to turn the child over to him, investigators said. Authorities soon learned that Hassan, along with the child, had boarded a flight to Japan. Investigators unsuccessfully attempted to have the flight directed back to the United States.
Investigators later interviewed Hassan, who maintained the child was his, not Thomason's, and that the boy's name was not Siraj. Hassan said Thomason, the child's aunt, had refused to return the tot after a visit. Hassan said he had to threaten to call police in order to get his sister to return his son.
Agents found Hassan had a passport and other documentation showing the child to be his son. A DNA test confirmed it.
A federal grand jury indicted Thomason on Oct. 8, 2009, for making material false statements. Thomason waived her right to a probable cause hearing and was released on the condition that she not leave the area.
The case was continued until Monday, when Thomason entered her guilty plea.
"The emergency reporting system needs to be taken seriously. It is for bona fide emergency situations that require medical treatment or police assistance, so that services can be dispatched quickly to those in need of help," U.S. District Attorney George E.B. Holding said. "When a person reports a false emergency it takes from those in need valuable manpower and precious time while using resources already stretched tight."
A motive in the case remains unclear.
Thomason is scheduled to be sentenced May 17. She faces up to five years imprisonment, followed by up to three years supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. ( aolnews.com )
According to the criminal complaint, Rosnah Hassan Thomason, 43, called officers with the Smithfield Police Department on May 18, 2008, and reported her 3-year-old son, Siraj Munir Davenport, missing. Thomason told police the boy had disappeared while she was loading produce in her car at the Brightleaf Flea Market.
Authorities searched the area but were unable to locate the child. As a result, an Amber Alert was issued and FBI agents were called in to assist.
From the start, investigators were suspicious of Thomason's claims. No one at the flea market remembered seeing her with a child, and a search of her residence turned up an Internet printout that detailed how to report a child missing.
On May 19, Thomason admitted she had lied about the details of her son's disappearance and told detectives that her brother, Kamarudin Hassan, had forced her to turn the child over to him, investigators said. Authorities soon learned that Hassan, along with the child, had boarded a flight to Japan. Investigators unsuccessfully attempted to have the flight directed back to the United States.
Investigators later interviewed Hassan, who maintained the child was his, not Thomason's, and that the boy's name was not Siraj. Hassan said Thomason, the child's aunt, had refused to return the tot after a visit. Hassan said he had to threaten to call police in order to get his sister to return his son.
Agents found Hassan had a passport and other documentation showing the child to be his son. A DNA test confirmed it.
A federal grand jury indicted Thomason on Oct. 8, 2009, for making material false statements. Thomason waived her right to a probable cause hearing and was released on the condition that she not leave the area.
The case was continued until Monday, when Thomason entered her guilty plea.
"The emergency reporting system needs to be taken seriously. It is for bona fide emergency situations that require medical treatment or police assistance, so that services can be dispatched quickly to those in need of help," U.S. District Attorney George E.B. Holding said. "When a person reports a false emergency it takes from those in need valuable manpower and precious time while using resources already stretched tight."
A motive in the case remains unclear.
Thomason is scheduled to be sentenced May 17. She faces up to five years imprisonment, followed by up to three years supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. ( aolnews.com )
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