LE is not going to put something into a warrant to a JUDGE that is not factual! No way, no how. They have a career ahead of them and would not risk it.
So, in your opinion, LE put the "hit" into the warrant to put pressure on the parents, thus playing one against each other. I have a question...if their daughter was kidnapped, how would that work? :innocent:
Sure they would - as others have pointed out, cops do it all the time, either because they're corrupt or because they can say, sorry, it was a false hit.
Second, it would only work if one or the other or both hurt the child. LE thinks that's what happened, so that is the playbook they are drawing from. It's hard to investigate a stranger abduction. That's why they are doing what they think is easier. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to have worked.