The following is a release from the Kirkland Police Department:

On Nov. 11, the Kirkland Police Department received an email from a concerned citizen who had seen a Facebook post by a female stating she had been the victim of a sexual assault in our city and that the Kirkland Police responded but would not investigate the case or even file a police report. The Kirkland Police Department takes all allegations very seriously and the department conducted an investigation to locate the victim in an effort to bring light to the event. The investigation was unable to locate any call of that type being received through our dispatch center and any officers being dispatched to a call. Investigators had no information on the author of the Facebook post as the information had been marked out on the email.

Yesterday investigators were finally able to determine who the author of the original post was and interviewed her at her work location in Kirkland. During the interview the female admitted she had fabricated the entire event and no assault had occurred and the Kirkland Police were never called. The female cited her reason for posting the false claim as “being distraught over the recent election”.

The Kirkland Police Department takes all calls for service seriously and are handled in a thorough and professional manner. Allegations of a sexual assault are always investigated and prosecuted to the full extent possible. The Kirkland Police Department has worked very hard to gain the trust and cooperation of the citizens of Kirkland and continues every day to build on this trust through transparency and accountability. False reports such as this can cast doubt on an agencies reputation. We would like to thank the citizens of Kirkland for their ongoing support and trust which they have placed on the members of the Kirkland Police Department.

For more information about this case, please contact Lieutenant Rob Saloum 425-587-3417 or email at rsaloum@kirklandwa.gov.