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On Tuesday, October 26, 2022, authorities arrested 26-year-old Fredrick Gamble in Helena-West Helena, Arkansas, for faking his abduction.
According to a press release, Gamble, an Arkansas native, was arrested on multiple charges, including filing a false report over a viral kidnapping hoax on Facebook. The hoax prompted a search for the 26-year-old whose mother reported her son missing the former made a misleading post alleging that he was a victim of an active abduction.
According to the Helena-West Helena Police, at around 7:30 am on Tuesday, Gamble posted on Facebook that he was abducted and forced into a gray van. He added that some men weilding weapons abducted him while he was walking in Helena.
Police determined that the kidnapping was a hoax after they found Gamble at a home with his 42-year-old girlfriend, Nicole Rohrscheib.
In a news release, authorities investigating the case said that they had determined the kidnapping to be a hoax.
Fredrick Gamble's mother reported her son missing after learning about the post
Police reportedly learned about the Facebook post after Fredrick Gamble's mother, Cynthia Sparks, reported her son missing on Tuesday morning. She filed the report after she saw the Facebook post.
In the post, Gamble wrote:
"Help Me Please I Was Just Kidnapped Walking In Helena I’m In The Back Of A Gray Van These Guys Pulled Guns On Me & Forced Me Inside Couldn’t See Tags Only the First 3 Please Help Me ASAP.”
He added that he wasn't sure where he was and requested someone to help him as he claimed he didn't know how long he had. Gamble also said that all he knew about the license plates was that the number started with AE3.
As the post gained traction on social media, thousands of people expressed their concern about Fredrick's wellbeing. Meanwhile, James Mayfield, Helena-West Helena's Police Chief Fox 24 that he didn't believe the abduction claims were credible.
However, he added that his department was investigating a possible kidnapping. Mayfield noted that the department was looking for the van and although they didn't have any leads, it was an active investigation.
Fredrick Gamble was arrested after police found him
After police found Fredrick Gamble with his girlfriend, they concluded that the 26-year-old had faked his kidnapping.
Gamble, who was arrested for attacking a woman last year, was charged with felony possession of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance, and fleeing. He was also charged with three counts of failing to stop at a stop sign, driving on a suspended license, careless and prohibited driving, and defective equipment due to a traffic stop.
Officials said that Fredrick Gamble's girlfriend was also arrested and charged with hindering apprehension or prosecution.
In a similar kind of a case, in September 2022, a 39-year-old woman from California, Sherri Papini, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for faking her kidnapping in 2016.
