Police in Alabama shared more information Monday afternoon about Carlee Russell, a 25-year-old woman who has returned home after being reported missing earlier this month.
At the press conference at 4 p.m. CT, Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis said Russell admitted that she was never abducted during the 49 hours she was missing and that she fabricated her 911 report of seeing a toddler alongside an interstate.
At the press briefing on Wednesday, Derzis said that the investigation into Russell’s disappearance is not over and that investigators are still working to account for the 49 hours she was missing.
Police say:Carlee Russell admits disappearance, ‘missing child’ reported on Alabama highway, a hoax
Russell was reported missing off a highway in a Birmingham suburb on the night of July 13 after calling 911 to report a toddler walking along the interstate, according to the Hoover Police Department. She returned home on foot on July 15.
At last week’s press briefing, Derzis played a recording of the 911 call during the conference that showed Russell reporting the sighting of the boy. However, Derzis said they did not receive reports of a missing child in that area and that Carlee’s 911 call remains the only timely report of a child on the interstate.
On July 18, Hoover police told USA TODAY that officers spoke to Russell but couldn’t “publicly share the details” from the interview. Derzis said the briefing was held due to the public’s concern surrounding the disappearance.
