Oct 10, 2008 4:25 pm US/Central
Parents: Girl Made Up Story Of Abduction, Rape
PALOS HEIGHTS, Ill. (STNG) ―
The parents of a 17-year-old southwest suburban girl who claimed she was abducted and raped last month released a statement Friday saying their daughter made up the story, the SouthtownStar is reporting.
The Stagg High School senior sparked a widespread manhunt Sept. 17 when she claimed she had been kidnapped from the T.J. Grinders sandwich shop at 12250 S. Harlem Ave. and sexually assaulted.
Police initially treated the girl's claims as legitimate, but suspicions arose after physical evidence collected in the hours after the alleged attack failed to substantiate her story.
"We offer our deepest apologies to the community of Palos Heights and the surrounding area, the police department and all those effected by this event," the family's statement read.
"We apologize for the unnecessary concern and time and effort from everyone involved. At this time, we assure you our community is safe and always has been."
Rumors about the case have swirled in the community and at Stagg over the last two weeks.
The case shocked the community and stoked anti-Arab sentiment in the area after she described her attacker as an olive-skinned man between 35 and 40, and helped with an artist's rendition of the alleged attacker.
Leaders in the Southland's Arab-American community expressed relief no crime was committed.
"I'm glad it's all made up," said Mohammed Sahloul, president of the Bridgeview-based Mosque Foundation, which displayed police-issued sketches of the supposed suspect. "If anything it proves that we don't have this problem as much as other communities."
Still, the accusations fed the already-skewed perception of Arab-Americans, Sahloul said. "Of course, people would be angry. It's basically attacking the whole community."
The girl claimed she had twice texted a pal earlier in the evening, telling him she had spotted a suspicious customer lurking outside the store looking at her. When the suspicious man returned as she was closing the store, she claimed, she called her friend and asked him to come get her.
But when the friend arrived at the store minutes later, she was missing and her possessions were scattered on the ground outside. The friend called 911 and police immediately began searching for the girl.
Officers were at the girl's home, interviewing her parents, when she walked up the driveway, dishevelled and barefoot, claiming to have been raped, police said.
The girl surprised many when she joined the hunt for her "attacker" in the following days, handing out fliers to passers-by on Harlem Avenue, against police advice.
The investigation -- which attracted the interest of the "America's Most Wanted" TV show, is estimated to have cost in excess of $200,000 so far.
(Source: Sun-Times News Group Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2008. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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