Richlands Police Department makes statement regarding an alleged abduction attempt

RICHLANDS, VA (WVNS) – The Richlands Police Department made a statement regarding an alleged abduction attempt.

A social media post was circulating within the Richlands community about this alleged abduction attempt that took place on Friday, August 22, 2025, according to a post on the Richlands PD Facebook page. The post in question alleged that a Hispanic man attempted to abduct a woman at a local car wash and steal her phone. The post went on to claim there was a second suspect possibly involved.

Around the time the post in question began to gain traction, Richlands PD was alerted to this by a 911 call. They immediately opened an investigation on the matter.

Law enforcement reviewed all available public and private camera footage from that scene. Upon review, the footage revealed a brief encounter between a woman and a man, according to Richlands PD’s Facebook page. The footage did not show any attempted assault, no attempt of theft by force, and no evidence of a second suspect directly involved in the situation, according to Richlands PD’s Facebook page.

Officers also learned that the woman did not contact 911 until 30 minutes after the incident and the woman remained at the car was to finish cleaning her vehicle, according to Richlands PD. She was also in close proximity to Richlands PD and officers were present at the station at that time, according to Richlands PD.

After interviewing the woman, investigators determined her account was “inconsistent” with the allegations made on social media, according to Richlands PD. No evidence was found to support the claim, according to Richlands PD.

Chief of Police Ronald Holt II said they will continue to investigate the case and provide any updates if they become available.