CULLMAN, Ala. — An incident involving a juvenile in the south Cullman Walmart parking lot on Wednesday night has been determined to be a misunderstanding, according to the City of Cullman.
The incident occurred on March 5 at approximately 7:30 p.m. when a woman reported that a young male opened the back passenger door of her vehicle while she was seated inside.
According to Cullman City Communications Director Mary Beth Sellers, the woman stated she had just gotten into her car when the door opened. As she began to get out, the juvenile ran away. The woman contacted dispatch, and two Cullman Police Department officers arrived at the scene. One officer met with the woman while the other searched the immediate area.
Cullman Police Department investigators were able to locate the vehicle the juvenile was in and identify the juvenile the following day, March 6. The juvenile told authorities he mistakenly believed the vehicle belonged to a friend, opened the rear passenger door, saw the woman inside and immediately ran off.
No charges were filed in the case. Sellers stated the woman decided an apology from the juvenile would be the best resolution.
“After the investigation was closed and the footage was reviewed, it was determined there was no attempted robbery or attempted carjacking from this incident,” Sellers said. “The complainant was contacted by Cullman PD, advised of the findings and decided an apology from the juvenile would be sufficient.”
Sellers addressed rumors that the incident was a prank intended for social media, stating there was no evidence to support that claim. However, she emphasized that the Cullman Police Department strongly advises against juveniles participating in pranks, as such actions could violate Alabama state law.
Additionally, Sellers refuted claims that the juvenile was the son of a City of Cullman employee, clarifying that his father is a law enforcement officer from a different agency, not Cullman PD.
The Cullman Police Department issued an initial statement with limited information due to the ongoing investigation. The department stated the update was necessary due to numerous calls stemming from a social media blog post that inaccurately claimed an attempted carjacking and robbery had taken place.
“At that time, we were able to determine neither an attempted robbery nor attempted carjacking had taken place due to reviewing video surveillance footage of the incident,” Sellers said.
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