Woman who told Ann Arbor cops of assault and robbery, admits she made it up

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (WJBK) - A University of Michigan student claimed she was hit in the head and robbed, but police say she actually made up the story and now she could be the one facing felony charges.

"She was hit with some type of blunt object and knocked unconscious," said Det. Lt. Matthew Lige, Ann Arbor police.

It sounds pretty scary, especially to students, hearing a woman is beaten and robbed in the middle of the day on State Street.

"It happened literally next to our house, I didn't know it turned out to be fake," said a neighbor.

It was completely fake, according to police. 

Ann Arbor Police Detective-Lieutenant Matthew Lige says the 21-year-old woman reported that around 4:30 p.m. last Saturday, she was walking out of her apartment with her headphones on when a man hit her from behind.

"She tells us she woke up 20 minutes later, not in the parking lot where she was originally walking," Lige said. "But now inside her car."

The woman told police the man also stole her jewelry and cash, but was unable to tell police how she ended up back in her car.

"Typically, we do not have those types of things happen in the city," Lige said. "The initial concern is if it is a legitimate robbery, as she described it, there is a lot of concern and stress in the law enforcement community,"

Police swung into action with first responders, evidence techs and detectives, sending out a crime alert to students and the public. But three days later, they realized her story isn't adding up.

"She was not knocked unconscious, she was not robbed of her belongings," Lige said. "The injuries that she had were not a result of being attacked."

Police say the woman only had a ripped shirt, a bruise and a couple of scrapes. Later admitted that her story was false.

Police are grateful the violent attack wasn't true, but are frustrated with all of the time and resources spent on a lie. Some students are feeling the same way.

Ann Arbor police say they're not letting this one go. Since that woman's original report was a felony, police are hoping she will now be charged with filing a false report - as a felony - as well.