Fake Kidnapping Video On YouTube Gets Australian 20-Somethings In Big Trouble

Police in Western Australia have charged five young men with an unusual crime: staging a fake kidnapping for a YouTube video.

Australian cops started investigating the case last year after they received a call about a teenager rolling out the back of a car wearing handcuffs but no shirt or shoes, Ars Technica reported. A man in a blue checkered shirt and a blue cap was chasing the boy, a tipster said.

Police were baffled when they arrived and couldn't find any witnesses.

Authorities ultimately discovered the YouTube video of the supposed kidnapping, and this week they charged five men between the ages of 21 and 25 with "creating a false belief," because the Australian cops had wasted their time investigating a fake kidnapping.

Sadly, these aren't the first young people to post such a video. Here are two other bogus kidnapping videos, courtesy of Ars Technica:

And here's another fake kidnapping video: