Bride-To-Be Was Faking It
Got Cold Feet, Needed Time Alone, She Tells Police
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Play CBS Video Video Missing Bride Had Cold Feet Missing Georgia bride-to-be Jennifer Wilbanks was found in New Mexico after she called police and told them she was abducted. It turns out she ran away from home, Randall Pinkston reports.
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Video Bride's 911 Call Police released a recording of the 911 call placed by Jennifer Wilbanks, the missing bride-to-be who faked her abduction. Wilbanks told the dispatcher that a Hispanic man had taken her hostage.
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Police officers escort a blanket-covered Jennifer Wilbanks through the Albuquerque airport as she is taken to her flight and back to Atlanta. (AP)
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John Mason reacts in front of his home in Duluth, Ga., early Saturday, to news that his bride-to-be, Jennifer Wilbanks had been found alive. (AP)
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Jennifer Wilbanks (AP)
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Photo Essay Runaway Bride A Georgia bride-to-be claimed she was abducted, then admitted she had gotten cold feet.
Just hours before Wilbanks called her fiance, police in Duluth said they had no solid leads in the case and began dismantling a search center. Relatives offered a $100,000 reward for information and were planning a prayer vigil.
The hunt for Wilbanks had consumed the tight-knit town. Her picture and newspaper articles about her disappearance were on telephone poles and shop windows. Police had also seized three computers from the home she shared with Mason.
Mason did not speak publicly after Wilbanks said she lied about being abducted. Her uncle, Mike Satterfield, thanked people who had helped in the search.
"Jennifer had some issues the family was not aware of. We're looking forward to loving her and talking to her about these issues," he said.
Ryan Kelly, owner of the Park Cafe a few blocks from Wilbanks' house, which gave out coffee and sandwiches to searchers, said he was glad Wilbanks was alive and healthy.
"But that being said, this is one of the most selfish and self-centered acts I've ever seen. We saw her parents, and you could see the anguish in their eyes. It was terrible," he said.
"I don't care where you are — unless you're in the Amazon rain forest, you'd know everybody was out looking for you."
©MMV, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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