‘Help Me!’ Hoax: 2 Teens Charged For Fake Kidnapping in Central New York

Kids! 2 are responsible for wasting time and resources of law enforcement for their so called kidnapping prank in Ilion.

Ilion police arrested two 19-year-olds in connection with the fake kidnapping after a disturbing video emerged showing a car speeding down the street. In the video, a voice can be heard screaming, “Somebody help me!” and claiming to have been kidnapped.

Both teens admitted they screamed for help and that they'd been kidnapped several times while speeding through the village of Ilion streets.

"They admitted they were joking and laughing throughout the time they were screaming from the open vehicle window and added they had to stop several times because their throats hurts so much from yelling," said Ilion Chief of Police Laurie Ann DeVaul.

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2 Teens Charged

19-year-old Adrian Vandeusen of Rome was charged with falsely reporting an incident, which is a misdemeanor. He was released on an appearance ticket and is due in court June 13 at 10 AM.

19-year-old Bryan Patrick of West Winfield was also charged with a misdemeanor count of falsely reporting an incident and speeding and will be in court with Vandeusen on June 13.

"The village of Ilion Police Department is extremely thankful for the assistance provided by the public, media, and the village of Herkimer Police Department for helping locate the people involved."

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No Laughing Matter

While some people may think they’re just playing around or pulling a prank like those seen on social media, these actions are no laughing matter.

"This type of behavior cause public alarm, panic and fear and results in extensive investigations that require hours of valuable research which could otherwise be devoted to real crimes and the protection of real victims," DeVual said.

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