UC Berkeley 'kidnapping' was actually a prank, police say
A student walked into UC Berkeley's police department Wednesday afternoon to clear up the confusion.
A group of people who grabbed a UC Berkeley student and put him into a van on campus Tuesday night did it as part of a prank related to their fantasy football league, authorities say.
The student is safe and walked into UC Berkeley's police department Wednesday afternoon to clear up the confusion.
On Tuesday night, a witness saw a group of people, described as 8-10 college-aged males, "carry another person and put them into a cargo van" near Stephens Hall shortly before midnight.
The witness reported the incident to police about an hour later.
Emilie Raguso
In a crime alert at 2:10 a.m., the University of California Police Department described the incident as kidnapping and aggravated assault.
The Scanner immediately attempted to reach UCPD for further details but did not hear back.
In an update Wednesday afternoon, however, UCPD said the witness had not heard "any sounds of distress, but did hear giggling and laughing."
The student contacted police at about 1:40 p.m. Wednesday to explain what happened, UCPD said.
Authorities have now confirmed that the activities were consensual and that no crime was committed.
