There is a new update about Caroline Miller and her son at Walmart. So apparently, she made this big fuss about a man named Mahendra Patel trying to snatch her kid at Walmart. But guess what? New footage has surfaced that shows she lied about the whole thing!
I mean, seriously, who makes up a story like that? It’s pretty messed up if you ask me. And you won’t believe what the actual footage shows. It turns out, the story she told is different from what the footage shows. What was she trying to achieve?
Caroline Miller was shopping with her son, Jude, and her four-year-old daughter inside the Walmart in Acworth last month when she alleged that 56-year-old Mahendra Patel tried to distract her by asking where to find Tylenol and used the moment to kidnap her son.
He was arrested three days after the incident and has been held at Cobb County Jail for nearly a month, facing charges of attempted kidnapping, assault and battery.
However, Patel’s attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, shared surveillance video she claims ‘proves her client is innocent’, describing him as a ‘friendly older gentleman’ simply buying Tylenol for his elderly mother.
‘He’s being friendly. This is a friendly older gentleman trying to help people, asking for help at the Walmart,’ Merchant told WSB-TV Atlanta 2 News.
‘This kidnapping of a minor bell was rung,’ she added. ‘Once that bell is rung, it’s really hard to unring it. It’s really hard to get that back and get a bond.’
On March 18, while finishing up her shopping at the large retailer, Miller was navigating the aisles on a motorized scooter – her daughter situated at her feet and her son seated in her lap – when the device broke down in the pharmacy aisle.
It was at that moment, she claimed, that Patel approached her and her children, asking for help finding the pain medication.
When Miller momentarily released one arm from around Jude, she alleged that Patel tried to take advantage of the moment and attempted to grab her son from her lap.
‘When I pointed my arm out this way to say this is where it was, that is when he reached down, put both of his hands on Jude, and grabbed him out of my lap,’ Miller told WSB-TV last month.
The mother claimed she immediately fought back and tried to free her toddler from Patel’s grip after realizing his intentions, describing the altercation as a ‘tug of war’ between them.
‘This video is very clear that did not happen,’ Merchant told the outlet, seemingly debunking what Miller has claimed throughout the process.
At that moment, Miller alleged, Patel attempted to pick up her son, leading to a struggle between the pair as they ‘tug of warred’ over the child.
The store’s security footage, however, appeared to tell a very different story – showing no clear signs of a struggle between Patel and Miller, but rather a seemingly friendly interaction between two strangers.
Patel’s attorney explained that her client believed the child was about to fall, prompting him to lean forward and attempt to help reposition the two-year-old seated on Miller’s lap.
The video then shows Patel stepping back from the scooter as Miller points once again toward a location in the distance.
Moments later, Patel was seen walking off in the direction Miller indicated – leaving the family alone and completely out of harms way.
‘If you’re in Walmart and you see someone in need, you’re just going to have to let them fall apparently,’ Merchant told the outlet. ‘You’re just going to have to let them… you know, whatever happens, happens.’
‘We can no longer help handicapped people is what this is saying.’
The lesson here is to always fact-check before jumping to conclusions. Don’t believe everything you hear, especially when it comes to wild stories like this one. And as for Caroline Miller, well, let’s just say she’s going to have a hard time living this one down.
Flip to the next page to watch the footage…
