Kidnapping in Champaign Wasn't Legit

A federal grand jury has indicted the woman allegedly kidnapped from a Champaign mall in June and the two men who appeared to kidnap her.

Monica Ramirez of Urbana, Eduardo Cortez of Texas, and Jarbey Villalobos of Champaign were indicted on counts of conspiring to provide law enforcement with false statements to conceal that the reported kidnapping was, in fact, a hoax. Ramirez is also charged with one count of making false statements to law enforcement and two counts of perjury for making false statements before a federal grand jury.

The indictment alleges that Ramirez and Cortez were involved in a dating relationship in Texas. Ramirez and her family moved to Illinois earlier this year. Ramirez's family did not approve of her relationship with Cortez. In June, Ramirez and Cortez allegedly agreed to design a scheme where Cortez would kidnap Ramirez so her being with him would not be seen as willing. To make the scheme look good, Ramirez even appeared in court in Champaign County and petitioned for an emergency order of protection against Cortez. Cortez allegedly got Villalobos to help with the fake abduction.

Police, though, found them and that's when the scheme started to unravel.