A Colorado Parks and Wildlife ranger who reported being stabbed at Staunton State Park on Tuesday, leading to a massive police response and manhunt, was arrested on suspicion of faking the incident as part of a hoax.
Callum Heskett, 26, radioed for help at around 9:30 a.m. and said he had been attacked and stabbed, and the man who stabbed him fled on foot, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. However, the sheriff’s office confirmed Thursday that the man is accused of stabbing himself.
A flood of local and state law enforcement quickly descended on the park, and sheriff’s officials sent alerts to 8,600 nearby residents and locked down the area.
But inconsistencies started coming up in Heskett’s statements, sheriff’s officials said Thursday.
“That, along with other conflicting and questionable evidence, further raised concerns about the validity of his allegations,” the sheriff’s office said on social media. “After investigators conducted their first interview with Heskett, it became even more clear that his story was flawed and erroneous.”
Heskett, who is still in the hospital, was arrested on suspicion of attempting to influence a public servant and tampering with evidence, both felonies, along with misdemeanor counts of false reporting, reckless endangerment and obstructing government operations.
This is a developing story.
Sign up to get crime news sent straight to your inbox each day.