Police warn of AMBER Alert hoax

Police say a hoaxer has been sending fake AMBER Alert messages to cell phones throughout the area.
One of the fake messages that has been circulating claims a 7-year-old girl has been kidnapped, describes the truck she is being held in and pleads for the message to be forwarded, police say.
"[The fake alerts] weaken the system. It makes people not so aware of the program," says Sgt. Dave Scott, of the New York State Police. "If they feel that it's junk, if they feel that it's not real, they dismiss it."