Woman arrested after making up kidnapping story to see if boyfriend 'truly cared about her'

A Florida woman was arrested on Tuesday after she claimed she was kidnapped at gunpoint but later admitted she concocted the story to get her boyfriend's attention.

Janet Elena Brooks, 22, of Clermont was charged with filing a false report with law enforcement. She was released from the Lake County Jail after she posted a $2,000 bond.



According to an arrest affidavit, Brooks reported to Lake and Polk County sheriff’s offices on Saturday that she had been abducted by a man at gunpoint while walking in the parking lot of a Four Corners apartment complex in the Clermont area and forced into the trunk of his black Kia. She said she was then dropped off at a dog park in Polk County.

But deputies later obtained surveillance footage from the front gate camera of the complex that showed her exiting the property and walking toward US Highway 27. Deputies then confronted Brooks on Tuesday and she admitted she made up the story because she thought another woman was interested in her boyfriend and she just wanted to see if he “truly cared about her.” She added she actually had walked to a Clermont store and had a friend drop her off at the dog park.