Pennsylvania woman faked abduction, sparked search, because she dropped out of school, police say

A 23-year-old woman awaits courts hearings in Pennsylvania after she was charged Wednesday with falsely reporting her own disappearance to police, court documents show.

Chloe Stein, of Jeannette, Pennsylvania, was released from jail earlier this week after allegedly "creating an entire scenario" to make people think she had been abducted Monday night, state police told WTAE News.

Police, a K-9 unit and a helicopter were deployed in a search effort when the community believed the woman had been abducted, WTAE footage shows.

Police told the local outlet Stein spun up the whole scenario in part because she wasn't going to be able to graduate from college at up upcoming ceremony.

Jeannette, Pennsylvania, is a city east of Pittsburgh in Westmoreland County with a population of around 8,500.

What did Chloe Stein do?

Authorities said Stein texted her boyfriend telling him she had been pulled over by police around 10:30 p.m. Monday, and then no one saw or heard from her, WTAE reported.

The following day, police began their search

But authorities realized their was no record of a traffic stop affiliated with Stein.

By Tuesday night, it was discovered the woman had abandoned her own car on the side of the road Monday night and walked a few miles away, according to WTAE.

She was found not far from her home Tuesday evening after an extensive search of the wooded area near her parked car.

Stein reportedly told police she had been abducted at gunpoint by a man in a mask, and was eventually released near her home, WTAE reported. But she later admitted to making the whole scenario up.

Stein's lawyer Phil DiLucente told USA TODAY he's "hopeful" the criminal complaints against Stein can be resolved at a preliminary hearing later this month and that the case won't have to go to trial.

What was she charged with?

Stein was charged with misdemeanors for creating false alarm for a public safety agency, making false reports to authorities, disorderly conduct, and obstruction of the administration of law, according to court records.

DiLucente said the allegations against his client are "completely out of character for Ms. Stein."

"She's a very very hard working young lady, she's very well educated, she was top of her class in high school, she's very personable," he said.

Stein is scheduled to be back in court for a preliminary hearing on May 25.

Why did she fake her own disappearance?

Pennsylvania state police told WTAE they believe Stein may have plotted her fake disappearance because she had dropped out of college.

Stein had previously been a student at Penn State University, WTAE reported, but police said she hasn't been enrolled for about a year and a half.

Stein's college situation was "probably the number one driving force for the whole scenario," state police trooper Steve Limani told WTAE. "The fact that she hadn't been in college for almost two years — her circle had believed she was graduating in a matter of two or three days."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chloe Stein accused of faking abduction in Pennsylvania, police say