Dad ‘claimed son who died years ago was abducted to get stolen car back’
A father whose son died years ago concocted a story that the youngster had been abducted to get his stolen car back, police say.
Ronald Sanders allegedly said that his vehicle was taken by three men from outside an Exxon gas station in Memphis, Tennessee, last month with his two year-old son inside.
But that boy, also called Ronald, died in a car crash two years ago, with Sanders reportedly admitting that he’d spun the story in the hope it would pressure police into finding his car faster.
Officers grew suspicious of his story after discovering he’d waited an hour to ring them after the theft allegedly took place.
Neighbor Shavon Grayer was among those surprised by the allegations.
She told WREG: ‘That’s crazy for him to lie. He shouldn’t have lied like that.’
Another local said: ‘That is sick. That is sad.’
Sanders has been charged with felony filing a false report.
Memphis Police Lieutenant Colonel Dennis McNeil condemned his alleged behavior, saying: ‘If we going on a wild good chase you have just taken our proficiency and clearance rate down.
‘So, it’s not fair to the people who are not filing false reports.
‘It’s not fair to the victims who need our time and assistance.’
Ronald Jr was one of three youngsters killed when a car driven by his father drove into the back of an 18 wheeler on the I-22 near Blue Springs, Mississippi.
It is unclear what caused the crash, with Sanders Sr not facing any criminal action afterwards.