Police say woman lied about boy in stolen car
A Memphis woman lied about her son being in a stolen car Thursday afternoon, sparking a frantic search for the 1-yearold boy who was in a Frayser home the whole time, police said.
Elbenie Edwards, 22, has been charged with filing a false report; she was booked into Jail East on Thursday night. It’s still uncertain why she told police her son was in the stolen car, police said, but this is not the first time that’s happened in Memphis. Police also charged Shaquille Wideman, 18, with theft of property between $10,000$60,000; he’s being held at the Shelby County Jail.
“She dropped the kid off with a relative last night. Her and this guy, they were together in the car. Dude took her car without her consent and just basically she lied,” Memphis Police Department spokesman Louis Brownlee said. “The reason for her lies are unknown at this time.”
This odd saga began a little after 12:30 p.m. when Edwards reported that her 2014 Chevy Cruze was stolen at Ridgeway and Knight Arnold with her 1-yearold son, Isiah Edwards, still inside. That launched the search by police that included an Amber Alert issued for the boy.
But just after 3 p.m., shortly after the Amber Alert went out, police said they found the boy at a residence in the 1400 block of Briercrest Lane in Frayser.
Wideman was detained at 6175 Trout Valley in the Hickory Hill area. The vehicle was also found at 6337 Wind Ridge, a couple of blocks from where the suspect was apprehended.
Further investigation unraveled the tall tale, Brownlee said.