17 year old kid shot self to fake his kidnapping ‘by 4 Hispanic men,’ law enforcement says!

A teen at the center of a statewide Amber Alert faked his kidnapping and shot himself to keep the lie going, Florida officials say.

Deputies began searching for 17 year old Caden Speight the afternoon of Thursday, Sept. 25, and responded to the scene of an apparent shooting, according to a news release from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.

At the scene, deputies said they located Speight’s vehicle, but the teen was nowhere to be found.

But before Speight vanished, he texted his family — and those texts formed the basis for the initial investigation and search to find him, Sheriff Billy Woods said during a Sept. 29 news briefing.

The boy had been purportedly “taken by four hispanic men,” according to initial information. However, Woods said investigators quickly determined that wasn’t the case.

There were an “alarming amount of red flags,” Woods said, and deputies learned that Speight recently bought a bicycle, tent and other camping supplies.

Speight was found in Williston after wandering into a roadway with a gunshot wound, where he was then spotted by passersby, the sheriff said.

“Kaiden simply rode away toward Williston while the rest of us were left to think the worst and my team was working in overdrive to solve this case,” he said.

Williston is a roughly 100-mile drive northwest from Orlando.

While investigators did find evidence of a gunshot near Speight’s truck, Woods says the teen shot himself in the leg with a handgun he had taken with him.

The teen’s story was “completely made up,” he said, adding that Speight shot himself in order to “continue the ruse.”

Since Speight was located, his parents have refused to cooperate with investigators, Woods said.

No charges have been brought as of early Sept. 30, but Woods said charges “are not off the table.”