German teenager ‘faked her own kidnapping to extort £35,000 ransom from her father’

A teenager in Germany has been accused of faking her own kidnapping in an effort to extort a ransom from her father.

Police in Berlin claim the 13-year-old girl staged her own abduction with the help of an 18-year-old male accomplice.

They said the pair stages the kidnapping in a bid to blackmail her father for £35,000 in ransom money.

Police initially launched a massive search to find the girl after she was reported kidnapped on Saturday.

More than 280 officers and sniffer dogs were involved in the manhunt after she reportedly went missing.

However, police said they later found the girl and an 18-year-old man walking along the street in the district of Schoneberg in the south west of Berlin just after midnight.

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Her father had reported the kidnapping after receiving what he believed was a ransom demand from kidnappers.

The girl, who is originally from Syria, was handed over to the youth welfare office because she refused to return home.

Her alleged accomplice was taken into police custody.

He is due to appear in court to face charges of extortion and faking a crime.

Police claim the pair were well prepared for staging the kidnapping and that they had even recorded hostage videos.

They said the two teenagers had demanded two cash drops from her father.