Florida Teen’s Shocking Fake Kidnapping: From Amber Alert to Hoax
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Central Florida is reeling after what first appeared to be a terrifying abduction of a 17-year-old boy has now been revealed as a brazen hoax. Authorities say Cadence “Kaden” Spate, whose disappearance sparked a massive statewide Amber Alert, staged his own kidnapping—going so far as to shoot himself in the leg to keep the lie alive.
The drama began on September 25 when Kaden’s mother, Annie Spate, posted a frantic message on Facebook. She claimed her son had texted that he’d been shot and abducted by four Hispanic men in a white van. The post ignited panic. Deputies, helicopters, and K-9 units launched a desperate manhunt, while news of the teen’s alleged kidnapping spread across social media like wildfire.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement issued a statewide Amber Alert describing Kaden as “armed, injured, and in extreme danger.” Neighbors scoured ditches and riverbanks. Families locked their doors. “We thought the worst,” one resident recalled. “It was every parent’s nightmare unfolding in real time.”
But just 24 hours later, the story took a stunning turn. Surveillance cameras at a Walmart in Ocala, nearly 40 minutes from the supposed crime scene, showed Kaden calmly purchasing a bicycle, a tent, and camping gear—just hours before he allegedly vanished. Witnesses even reported seeing him pedaling away, appearing perfectly fine.
On September 26, deputies announced Kaden had been found safe in Williston. Relief quickly gave way to outrage. Sheriff Billy Woods revealed investigators had uncovered damning evidence: Kaden fabricated the entire story. The single gunshot near his abandoned truck, Woods said, was self-inflicted. “He chose to shoot himself in the leg to keep up the ruse,” the sheriff stated at a press conference. “There is zero chance this wound came from an assailant.”
The revelation left the community furious. Taxpayers had footed the bill for an intensive search involving state and federal agencies. “We don’t get to ignore these things,” Sheriff Woods emphasized. “We have to treat every report as real—because what if, just once, it actually is?”
Kaden’s parents have since refused to allow detectives to question him, leaving officials and the public with more questions than answers. Why would a 17-year-old go to such dangerous extremes? Was it a cry for help, a teenage stunt gone too far, or something more sinister?
Legal consequences now loom. Prosecutors are weighing charges ranging from filing a false police report to misuse of state resources. “It’s not off the table,” Woods warned. “This was not a prank—it was a calculated deception that endangered trust, wasted resources, and terrified an entire community.”
For now, Florida is left shaken by a case that morphed from a mother’s nightmare into a shocking cautionary tale. What began as an Amber Alert may soon end with a courtroom reckoning for the teen at the center of one of the most dramatic hoaxes the state has seen in years.
