“We will not entertain the negative social media comments”: Carlee Russell’s family speaks out amid hoax allegations 

Carlee Russell, a 25-year-old Alabama woman, went missing for 48 hours after calling 911 to report a toddler walking alone on the side of the highway on July 13. Shortly after turning up at her parent's house on Saturday, July 15, Russell told police that she was snatched by a white male while she was trying to check on the toddler wandering along I-459. However, after reviewing the evidence, police have revealed that no toddler was found wandering along the highway.

As the evidence in the case was made public, people were quick to condemn the 25-year-old nursing student accusing her of orchestrating her abduction. In the wake of the vitriolic comments leveled against Russell on social media, her family issued a statement, maintaining that Russell was indeed abducted and slammed the online allegations.

On Tuesday, July 18, Carlee’s mother, Talitha Robinson-Russell released a statement defending her daughter, stating that the false narratives online have taken a toll on their mental health. She wrote:

“Please understand our mental state and the anguish we have just experienced and that Carlee is still dealing with and understand that no matter how many demands or false narratives are produced we will not be bullied into doing anything that will compromise our daughter’s mental well being or the investigation.”

Talitha Robinson-Russell said that they will not be coerced into revealing information that might be a detriment to their daughter’s mental health and noted:

“Also, we will not entertain negative social media comments with a response so you find someone to do it. God has been too good to us and brought our daughter safely home and we will not participate in allowing this moment to be tainted.”

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Carlee Russell's mother addressed the Red Roof Inn allegations

While Carlee Russell's mother refused to explain the details regarding her daughter’s disappearance, she did clear up Red Roof Inn allegations where people online claimed that her daughter was hiding out at the hotel.

Talitha Robinson-Russell said that on Saturday morning they received a text from an imposter pretending to be their daughter. The alleged text supposedly claimed that Carlee was at the hotel. However, when the family descended on the hotel in search of the missing woman, she was reportedly not found in the location.

“There is one terrible and heartless hoax we want to address out of several. I received a text at some point from someone claiming to be Carlee and that she was at the Red Roof Inn. However, when my family went there and knocked on doors and looked for her and there was no indication Carlee was there nor that she had ever been there.

In addition to the written statement, in an interview with TODAY, Carlee Russell's parents said that their daughter fought for her life for two days before she turned up at their doorstep on Saturday, July 15. Russell's parents also reiterated claims of abduction.

A day after Carlee Russell’s mother released the statement, in a press conference on Wednesday, July 19, Hoover police thwarted Carlee Russell’s abduction claims while listing a slew of evidence, including Google search history and surveillance footage that countered the 25-year-old initial statement about her disappearance.