The text was every parent’s worst nightmare: A 17-year-old said he had been abducted, shot and wounded by a group of men on a Florida highway.
Law enforcement scrambled to the scene. A statewide alert went out to locate the boy. After it became known that the teen had said his abductors were “Hispanic,” an outpouring of outrage followed online.
But none of it was true, authorities now say.
In a text to his mother last week, the teen — identified as Caden Speight — claimed he had been shot and abducted by four Latino men on Highway 484 in Dunnellon in Marion County, Fla.
The claim prompted authorities to issue a statewide Amber Alert and sparked furor against Latinos on social media.
“It’s time to act, no more words,” one user wrote on X, tagging President Trump. “Unleash the hounds of hell.”
Another shared a drawing of a stick-figure family — the males clad in sombreros — with the caption, “Big or small, deport them all.”
On Sept. 25, deputies from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office arrived near Highway 484 and found Caden’s vehicle, but the teen was nowhere to be seen and his cellphone had been discarded, according to a news release from the agency.
The report triggered further investigation.
Caden was eventually found in Williston, Fla., authorities said, and his tale of abduction unraveled under closer scrutiny.
Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods said in a video statement Monday that detectives have collected evidence showing “the initial details that Caden texted to his family, were proven to be false — completely made up.”
“We did find evidence of a single gunshot where Caden left his truck,” Woods said. “However, his claims that he had been shot and abducted were quickly disproven. We then learned that he had purchased a bicycle, tent and camping supplies just prior to him reporting this.”
Caden bought a red-and-gray tent from a Walmart in Ocala, Fla., before he reported that he had been shot and abducted, Woods said.
“Caden simply rode away towards Williston while the rest of us were left to think the worst and my team was working in overdrive to solve this case,” Woods said.
The teen had a handgun with him and shot himself in the leg before he was found, authorities said.
Woods alleged Caden did this to “continue the ruse,” adding that authorities believe, “There is zero chance that Caden’s gunshot wound came from any type of an assailant.”
Woods said it wasn’t “off the table” that the teen might face criminal charges. The investigation is ongoing and detectives have questions for Caden, he added, but his parents haven’t allowed investigators to speak with him.
The update from law enforcement triggered a fresh wave of social media commentary, ranging from condemnations to calls for patience and unity.
“The fact that he tried to make it about four Hispanic men abducting him and not caring that that could have caused some real harm to innocent men that [were] doing nothing wrong in itself is despicable,” one Facebook user wrote.
“I think we just need to all be supportive and an actual community and not act all crazy and jumping to conclusions,” another said. “A lot of people make things up. All we have to do is pray.”
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