Deputies did ‘everything’ to find kidnapping suspect. The mom made it up, they say

On July 14, the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office learned that a suspect had tried to abduct a 12-year-old girl by pulling her into a wooded area.

The person wasn’t successful, but they launched every tool they had to find the person who allegedly committed this “heinous act,” according to a sheriff’s office spokesperson.

But on Friday, the sheriff’s office learned something else.

Deputies say 36-year-old Tammy Steffen staged the attempted abduction of her daughter and that the report she gave to the sheriff’s office was false.

During a Friday afternoon press conference, Capt. Chris Beaman said Steffen wasted the sheriff’s office’s time with an “absolutely ridiculous” stunt that put the entire community on alert.

The investigation revealed that Steffen rehearsed the alleged kidnapping with her daughter.

“What we learned through the investigation is that in the days leading up to this event, Tammy coached her 12-year-old daughter, which not only included a walk-through of where this was supposed to happen and help her daughter perpetuate this lie, but she even went so far as to have her daughter urinate herself to make it be more believable to law enforcement,” said Beaman.

Beaman said Steffen’s action wasted sheriff’s office and taxpayer resources.

“As a result of this report of attempted kidnapping, the sheriff’s office threw its might at this problem. It dispatached air, it dispatched canine, it dispatched specialty units — our major crimes units, our patrol units,” Beaman explained during the press conference. “A lot of resources went at — as they should — at the report of such a heinous event in our community.”

The target of Steffen’s ploy was a business associate that she was upset with. Detectives said she gave a “detailed description” of the man but video surveillance revealed that the person she had accused of trying to abduct her daughter was in a different city at the time of the stunt.

Steffen also framed the alleged crime scene with items she purchased from Walmart, the sheriff’s office said. Deputies say Steffen admitted to fabricating the story.

Steffen was arrested Thursday and charged with filing a false police report, tampering with/fabricating evidence and child neglect. On Friday, she was charged with tampering with witnesses after deputies learned that she told her daughter “it’s OK to tell the truth,” Bay News 9 reports. She is being held obond totaling $20,150 bond.

This story was originally published July 21, 2018 at 4:45 PM with the headline "Deputies did ‘everything’ to find kidnapping suspect. The mom made it up, they say."