Sheriff Brian Bellendir said a report of a child kidnapping or drowning at the Big Bend Recreational Lake on Sunday was evidently a hoax. The woman who allegedly called 911 was arrested on an obstruction charge.
Barton County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a 911 call made at 5:08 p.m., Bellendir said. They were dispatched to the lake, located in the 100 block of South Washington Street, just south of the Great Bend city limits.

“The initial call came to 911 Dispatch as a possible drowning,” Bellendir stated in a news release issued Monday afternoon. “Upon arrival, sheriff’s officers contacted Christina Chapman, age 35 of Great Bend, who stated while she was in the water swimming with her daughter, an unknown white male struck her, grabbed her 3-year-old child and left in an unknown vehicle. Chapman repeatedly stated she had no idea who had taken her child.
“Witnesses in the area stated they had not seen any other vehicles in the area nor had they seen a child with Chapman,” the sheriff added.

“The Kansas Bureau of Investigation was contacted as officers prepared to issue an Amber Alert. The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks was also contacted in the event we needed equipment to search for a drowned child. During the course of the investigation Sheriff’s detectives contacted other family members to see if they had information as to who may have abducted the child. During the course of that investigation it was discovered Chapman had voluntarily given her child to another family member several hours earlier. Evidently, the entire incident was a hoax.”
Chapman was transported to the Barton County Jail and booked. She was released on a $2,500 bond.