Brazilian girl, 12, fakes her own kidnapping to demand ransom from parents

A 12-year-old girl in Brazil allegedly staged her own kidnapping and demanded ransom from her parents, but police quickly uncovered the hoax and found her safe within hours, 24NewsHD TV reported on Saturday.

The incident took place in the city of Itaiopolis, where the girl reportedly disappeared from her home at around 1 am.

She later sent messages to her parents claiming that she had been abducted by kidnappers who were threatening to kill and torture her.

Fearing for their daughter's safety, the parents immediately alerted authorities.

Investigators from the Criminal Investigation Division in Mafra launched an urgent search and began examining the circumstances surrounding the alleged kidnapping.

At around 11 am, the girl contacted her parents again and demanded money in exchange for her release.

She warned that the supposed kidnappers would kill her if the ransom was not paid.

However, police investigations soon revealed that the story did not add up.

A few hours later, officers located the girl safe and unharmed at a house in a rural area on the outskirts of Itaiopolis.

 Authorities found no kidnappers at the scene and no evidence that an abduction had taken place.

During questioning, the girl admitted that she had fabricated the entire kidnapping story herself.

According to police, her objective was to obtain money from her parents by convincing them that she was being held captive.