`Missing` Woman Charged

New York State Police have arrested Barbara Staudt, the woman who was believed to be missing after she went to Taco Bell in Evesham Township, N.J.

Police in New York said they are charging Staudt, 37, with falsely reporting an incident in the third degree.

According to investigators, on July 14, Staudt was located walking along State Road 17 in the Town of Ashland, N.Y., by a motorist. She was transported to the New York State Police substation in Wellsburg, N.Y., where troopers interviewed her.

The New York State Police investigation revealed that Staudt was reported as missing or abducted by authorities in New Jersey.

Staudt reported to the New York State Police that a man and a woman abducted her and that the man tried to rape her. Staudt later recanted her story and admitted that she was in the Ashland area with a male acquaintance of her own free will. After her arrest, Staudt was issued an appearance ticket in response to the criminal charge and ordered to reappear at a later date in Wellsburg and was released.

Pennsylvania State Police assisted in the investigation and transported Staudt to the trooper facility in Towanda, Pa., where New Jersey authorities met them and arranged transportation for her back to New Jersey.

Falsely reporting an incident is a Class B misdemeanor in New York State and is punishable by up to three months in jail.

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