On Saturday June 16, Ronald Reed, 47, told his wife Vickie he had been stabbed by a man who had begged him for change. However, it turns out that this was all a hoax according to Orange County Sheriff's Lt. Margie Sheehan.
Reed claimed to have been walking toward a gazebo at Doheny State Beach when he saw the man walking towards him and declined to give him any change. Reed then said he continued walking to the DoubleTree in Dana Point where he asked for help after he began to feel faint. His wife Vickie recounted what he told her about the incident and said,
“As they actually passed each other my husband felt what he thought was a punch in the side stomach area. Then he felt the warmth of blood and saw it dripping down his pants. He turned around and the guy was gone.”
Vickie Reed later confirmed her husband’s story was indeed a lie.
“Yes, it was a lie told to my whole family,” she said. “Truthfully, I don’t know what to say. I’m in shock, I’m angry, I’m hurt and I’m just trying to figure out how to help my kids understand what l can’t.”
Sheehan, who is the chief of police in Dana Point, said the case will be forwarded to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, in regard to the filing of a false police report.
“There is no longer an active investigation and law enforcement will not continue to search for a suspect,” she told the council.
Officials have not confirmed how Reed got the wound that required four staples when he was treated at Mission Hospital on Saturday.
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