STOCKTON, Calif. — The California Highway Patrol is sending a message to parents who may be driving with children in the car: Know what your children are doing in the back seat at all times.
On Saturday, officers with the CHP's Stockton office received a call about a girl holding a sign that read, "Help me[.] She's not my mom!! Help!!" while riding in a car traveling southbound on Highway 99 at Dillard Road.
Two officers and a K9 unit from CHP's Valley Division located the car on Highway 99 at 8 Mile Road in Stockton, according to the CHP.
After speaking with the woman who was driving the car, officers realized that the woman was the girl's mother. The girl made up the sign because she "thought it was a fun thing to do," according to officers. The girl's mother wasn't aware of what her daughter was doing in the back seat of the car.
The woman and her daughter left the scene after officers confirmed there was no foul play.
"Six CHP units were assigned to this call instead of responding to legitimate calls or patrolling their beats because of this hoax," the CHP said a Facebook post.
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