BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) - The reported kidnapping of a
nine-year-old California boy that triggered a two-state Amber Alert
yesterday was an apparent hoax.
Police say Zane Newton died in an accidental dirt collapse in a
field near his Bakersfield home and another boy made up the
kidnapping story. Newton's body was found buried beneath the dirt
hours after the reported abduction. Police say it appears he fell
into a hole and it collapsed around him.
The boy who made the kidnapping claim told police that a masked
man had pulled up in a black car and opened fire on them. He said
Zane
might have been hit by gunshots before the man took him away.
Officers searched the neighborhood, knocking on doors, and
learned the boy had been playing in the lot. They went there and
found the body.
