GUILTY NJ - Kara Alongi, 16, charged in abduction hoax, 30 Sept 2012

[Zafina]

So if she is a runaway, why would she want all that attention by tweeting that? Has there been any statement by her parents? I sincerely hope LE know what they are talking about, cause now people turn against this girl and probably stop looking for her.
When I first read the thread headline saying its a hoax I felt anger, but now after giving this all a thought I'm worried.
What ever happened she's a kid and deserves to be safe.

 

[TxLady2]

I agree that some times kids have something more going on in the home environment and everything. However there are also kids that are just straight up brats who come from good families. If this girl staged this kidnapping them she should be held accountable for her actions. Especially since this has gone completely viral in news outlets. I mean I hope she is found safe but it does sound like she staged the whole thing according to what police are saying. You would not believe some of the little brats I have come across that live her who I know for a fact come from good families. I hope that Kara is found safe and that she gets the help that she so obviously needs.

AMEN to that! I hope there will be consequences for her actions. Not only did she scare a whole lot of people but she wasted LE's time, manpower and resources in the process. She also put herself in danger.
I hope she comes home safe, but she still should be given a serious talk and maybe have to do some community service. There doesn't have to be anything wrong in the home... and she may not have any mental issues, maybe she just thought it would be fun and didn't think of how big it would get.

 

[hollyblue]

AMEN to that! I hope there will be consequences for her actions. Not only did she scare a whole lot of people but she wasted LE's time, manpower and resources in the process. She also put herself in danger.
I hope she comes home safe, but she still should be given a serious talk and maybe have to do some community service. There doesn't have to be anything wrong in the home... and she may not have any mental issues, maybe she just thought it would be fun and didn't think of how big it would get.

I would have been slapped up the side of the head if my parents knew I was talking that way on twitter....if it would have existed. Just because others do it is no excuse. It's not only Do You Know Where Your Kids Are..today....it's What Are They Saying...and To Whom. IMO

 

[KaylynnCouture]

I just want everyone to please keep in mind (primarily the media..) that the tweet may have, absolutely, been fake and no abduction occurred.

However, Kara is still missing. She could be in danger (met someone off the internet, for example) and until she's home safe she deserves just as much LE and media attention as any other missing person.

Does she deserve to be punished? Probably/yes. But that's up to her parents, and LE. Until she is back home, safe and sound, I urge everyone to not just write her case off. She is still missing.

 

[DecemberSunshine]

Maybe the sweatshirt is what she was wearing when her family left for the game, but she changed before she left the house. Most mom's probably could not pick out 1 missing shirt out of their teenage daughter's wardrobe.

Exactly, which is why I'm curious if the cabbie remembers what she was wearing when he dropped her at the station. I think that would give us more insight into Kara's goal.

 

[Amber34]

Wow, so much has happened since I have been at work. I would consider giving it up but then would be expected to do something else, like housework <shudder> and still wouldn't be able to sit on Websleuths all day!

I'm sorry to see Kara has been messing folk around like this, but we all make mistakes when we are young and with the amount of publicity she has garnered, there will be plenty of other young people out there who could have learned something.

BBM

The title of this thread was changed to add ("Hoax", police say). Maybe that shouldn't be in the title, since that might lead people to think Kara is not in danger. If she's a runaway, she's in danger IMO.

What Marilynilpa has said in the quote above is sooooo important. Whether she's a runaway, got lost or was abducted by aliens, she is still a missing and vulnerable teen and I'd hate people to give up on looking for her.

Now she has been found out she is likely to be even more reluctant to return as not only does she have the wrath of the old bill and her parents to face, but I would think from a lot of her friends too, who will have been genuinely upset and worried about her.

To Kara

Kara, if you are amongst the hundreds of guests reading this, just come home, please. You have to face them sometime, make it sooner rather than later. These things have a way of sorting themselves out and you'll be old news in a week or so.

 

[CHICANA]

I would have been slapped up the side of the head if my parents knew I was talking that way on twitter....if it would have existed. Just because others do it is no excuse. It's not only Do You Know Where Your Kids Are..today....it's What Are They Saying...and To Whom. IMO

Me too.. But unfortunately, the real 'brats' know that if their parents slap them on the side of the head, they'll be the ones in jail.

 

[Oneduality]

So if she is a runaway, why would she want all that attention by tweeting that? Has there been any statement by her parents? I sincerely hope LE know what they are talking about, cause now people turn against this girl and probably stop looking for her.
When I first read the thread headline saying its a hoax I felt anger, but now after giving this all a thought I'm worried.
What ever happened she's a kid and deserves to be safe.

I've been following this since I heard about it late last night... as for your question? well her twitter has lots of angsty / depressing posts peppered throughout .. she might just be trying to make people worry about her intentionally for the attention.. I did something like that when I was only about 10 though in my case it was much safer.. my street is a dead end at both ends and the neighbors all knew me .. I just wanted to see if my family would even look for me because I was angry at them.

I even packed a little suitcase ..

I trust she will be found alive and well .. she's probably afraid to show her face because I doubt she expected it would blow up like this.. she probably expected just her followers to see it ( she did NOT have that many followers last night.. not until it went viral ) ..

The one big concern I have though is that she's an attractive girl and she's in a rough area.. if she's alone, she better have her wits about her.

 

[eileenhawkeye]

New article: http://www.nj.com/union/index.ssf/2012/10/police_kara_alongis_twitter_ho.html

&#8220;We are investigating this as a simple runaway juvenile,&#8221; he said.

He = Police Chief.

It doesn't sound LE is too concerned. :/ Calling the case a "simple runaway juvenile"...

 

[rachaellouise]

On the Facebook someone mentioned her 21 year old boyfriend...? Would make plenty of sense.

 

[IHAVENOCLUE]

that's kind of where i'm leaning at the moment...we don't know how much money she had, so either she took the train to trenton or new york (the ends of the line either north or south). unless you have a lot of it, and are uber-street-smart, a pretty little blonde won't be too safe in either city unescorted. was she going to meet someone?

one of the articles mentioned that the dogs tracked her from the back door, through the neighbors' back yard, and onto the corner where the trail ended. presumably where she caught the cab. so her exit strategy was pretty risky, given that she wouldn't know if the '911' mention on twitter wouldn't have caused LE to respond and send a squad car. and from the scent trail, she obviously didn't want to be seen out in front of her house.

there wasn't much time between the tweet and the call to the cab company, correct?

Jumping off your post... Regarding K having money...

Cabs are pretty pricey, aren't they?

I wonder if she has a credit card?

credit card trail might help track her, too!

 

[rachaellouise]

I'd love to hear a locals perspective on this. I know MSM comments can't exactly be taken as fact but it'd be interesting to say the least!

 

[IHAVENOCLUE]

New article: http://www.nj.com/union/index.ssf/2012/10/police_kara_alongis_twitter_ho.html



He = Police Chief.

It doesn't sound LE is too concerned. :/ Calling the case a "simple runaway juvenile"...

Per this article:

"Her parents told police she had run away before."

I wonder where she went when she ran away before?

and I wonder if any of the circumstances surrounding the prior running away can help lead to where she is now?

 

[Zafina]

I've been following this since I heard about it late last night... as for your question? well her twitter has lots of angsty / depressing posts peppered throughout .. she might just be trying to make people worry about her intentionally for the attention.. I did something like that when I was only about 10 though in my case it was much safer.. my street is a dead end at both ends and the neighbors all knew me .. I just wanted to see if my family would even look for me because I was angry at them.

I even packed a little suitcase ..

I trust she will be found alive and well .. she's probably afraid to show her face because I doubt she expected it would blow up like this.. she probably expected just her followers to see it ( she did NOT have that many followers last night.. not until it went viral ) ..

The one big concern I have though is that she's an attractive girl and she's in a rough area.. if she's alone, she better have her wits about her.

Thanks, yes it make sense that she probably didn't think it would blow up like it did.

 

[MsFacetious]

I hope she comes home safe, of course.

But I have to disagree that she deserves as much attention as any other missing person, she doesn't.
This girl ran away, faked an abduction and she will likely come home when she is ready. She doesn't want to be found.

I don't want the police looking for someone who doesn't want to be found, when there are other children like Jaycee, Shawn, Elizabeth out there.
Yes there is a risk to a runaway and normally I want them looked for... but faking an abduction REALLY makes me angry.

She does not deserve the same attention that a truly abducted person should get.
The kids lost in the woods, or being held as sex slaves, or that are too young to run away... should get this attention.

Now when someone texts that they are in the trunk of a car, people are going to say "but maybe it's a hoax, remember that girl who faked it?"

 

[rachaellouise]

Any reason why the title has changed to "text a hoax"? New info?

 

[eileenhawkeye]

This is a quote from a new article from NJ.com

This could be a game-changer, the kind of case that is talked about and studied, the kind of story used a benchmark that all other hoaxes are measured against.

I guess they already forgot Balloon Boy?

 

[Coldpizza]

Honestly, I think she met up with someone and a few of her friends are aware of it. Hopefully, it's not some anonymous person she did meet on line.I know I pointed that out earlier, but the more I think about it I believe that's a possibility.

Her social media presence is obvious and with the infiltration of teens meeting perps online that disguise themselves with fake pictures and profiles she may have thought at 16 she met her guy.

I wouldn't lean this direction so much if it weren't for the taxi driver's account. What also troubles me is the lack of voice from her parents.

 

[shefner]

I hope she comes home safe, of course.

But I have to disagree that she deserves as much attention as any other missing person, she doesn't.
This girl ran away, faked an abduction and she will likely come home when she is ready. She doesn't want to be found.

I don't want the police looking for someone who doesn't want to be found, when there are other children like Jaycee, Shawn, Elizabeth out there.
Yes there is a risk to a runaway and normally I want them looked for... but faking an abduction REALLY makes me angry.

She does not deserve the same attention that a truly abducted person should get.
The kids lost in the woods, or being held as sex slaves, or that are too young to run away... should get this attention.

Now when someone texts that they are in the trunk of a car, people are going to say "but maybe it's a hoax, remember that girl who faked it?"

Kudos to you! Thanks for having the courage to say what many of us have certainly been thinking.

 

[revampz]

I am in two minds over this one...... I am angry because we are dealing with a immature little girl thinking it might be fun to get people to call 911 and obviously after attention............Once she is found, I agree with others above, maybe she should be made to listen in for a day or two on REAL 911 calls and see what is really happening out there and how she has wasted valuable police time...........

BUT saying that, now that we think it is a hoax, I dont think this girl has been prepared for the level of attention she has got and the nasty backlash......I am actually more worried about her now than when I read about the text...it will be really hard to be found and have to deal with what is bound to come her way from her peers.