Kara Alongi, the 16-year-old Clark, New Jersey teen who faked her own kidnapping in a Twitter hoax has been found. After attempting to run away from home in an event that received national attention, Alongi is home safe.
Alongi was discovered walking along the New Jersey Turnpike in Salem County on Tuesday. She was picked up by state police and taken to a nearby hospital to be evaluated. Her family met her ad the hospital and took her to a hospital closer to her home in Clark, New Jersey, according to NJ.com
Alongi was released from the hospital and returned home with her family on Wednesday morning. Police will question Alongi to try to determine why she faked her kidnapping and ran away.
"I'm happy to say they're reunited and safe and that's what counts for me. I'll reach out to them later in the day - I'm sure it's got to be a whirlwind there between family and media," Clark mayor Sal Bonaccorso told NJ.com. "I'm very happy and I know the community is very happy as well."
Police still need to figure out where Alongi went while she was missing. Before being picked up, she was last seen on Sunday at the Rahway Train Station, waiting for a train to New York. Police were under the impression that she got on a train to Manhattan, but they found her in South Jersey.
"At this time I don't know how she made it down there," Bonaccorso said. "Other than the cab to the train station, I don't know where she went or how she got there."
Alongi made national headlines when she went missing on Sunday evening after taking to her Twitter account to write "There is somone in my hour ecall 911." The cry for help caused thousands of Twitter users to spread the message in hopes that Kara would be found. More than 100,000 people started following her twitter account to see if she would post any updates.
Alongi's parents were at her younger brother's hockey game. Kara decided to stay behind. When her parents came home, they couldn't find her. The tweet gave friends, family and police the impression that Alongi had been abducted.
However police investigations showed that there was no sign of an abduction in the house. They later learned that a cab was called to the address around the same time Alongi sent out the cry for help tweet. A cab driver confirmed that he took Alongi to the train station and later surveillance images showed her waiting for the train.
Alongi set up her own kidnapping. She was missing for at least 46 hours.
