Third-hand, or even fourth-hand, information has Watertown police puzzled about whether there was an actual abduction attempt Sunday near Ohio Elementary School, 137 Ohio St.

The victim, if there was a victim, was a 15-year-old girl, who supposedly was offered money by a black male in a black Mustang. Or was it a black Honda?

The alleged incident was reported Monday afternoon, not by the girl, but by an adult who was the third or fourth person learning passed-on information, said Detective Sgt. Joseph R. Donoghue. It appears that the report got started with the “victim” telling a friend, who told another friend, and so on, he said. Finally, the adult overheard a conversation about the alleged event, and felt that police should get involved.

When the 911 call came in about 12:24 p.m. Monday, patrols were led to believe the incident had just occurred. Shortly thereafter, the alert was lifted when Sunday was specified as the day of occurrence.

The investigation is continuing.

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