Man arrested for wasting police resources, lied about kidnapping, triggered AMBER Alert
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) - A man is in jail accused of lying to police about a teen girl who was kidnapped inside his stolen truck Wednesday night. KRDO13 has learned the girl was never missing and that 34-year-old Daniel Reyes provided officers with an incorrect name and photos taken three years ago of a girl he knew.
On Oct. 16, authorities issued an AMBER Alert for 13-year-old Sandra Mendoza. Pueblo Police believed that the girl was in the truck when the truck was stolen.
Police say Sandra was not in the truck and Reyes lied about her whereabouts.
After the truck was recovered, the CBI issued an Amber Alert, but the teen was still not found. The Amber Alert was canceled after law enforcement determined the girl was safe at her home in Pueblo.
RELATED: AMBER ALERT deactivated after 13-year-old Pueblo girl found safe
Pueblo police have now arrested, Reyes, a man who knows the teen's family, for wasting law enforcement resources after they say that he lied about Sandra being in the truck when it was stolen.
Reyes is now in the Pueblo County jail and according to the Pueblo County inmate search is facing a charge of influencing a public servant.
We are working to learn Reyes' motive for lying about who the child was and her involvement in the stolen vehicle.
