A 15-year-old San Jose girl whose claim that she was kidnapped set off a dramatic rescue scene at San Leandro Home Depot on Sunday confessed to police later that night that she lied about the abduction.

San Jose police spokesman Jermaine Thomas said the teen was a runaway and didn’t want to get in trouble for taking off with a 28-year-old man. “She didn’t want to get in trouble because she was seeing someone who she wasn’t supposed to be seeing,” he said.

The girl was first reported missing Saturday. She led police to believe she was kidnapped in San Jose, then pretended she was being held against her will while at a Home Depot the next day.

As store employees stepped in to assist the teen, the alleged suspect, reportedly armed with a knife, fled toward Interstate 880, according to San Leandro police. He was found hiding in nearby bushes and arrested.

San Jose police said a missing-person report was filed Saturday but that the teen had been missing since Friday. The teen and the adult male were still being questioned late Sunday.