Police: Teen lied about being robbed at Hooters

LYNN – Police say a Melrose teen allegedly filed a fake police report in March saying he was robbed at Hooters on Route 1 in order to hide where he really was that night from his parents.Stephen Vaughan, 18, of 32 South Mountain Ave., was charged with filing a false police report and arraigned at Lynn District Court by Judge James Lamothe. Vaughan was released on personal recognizance with a pre-trial hearing scheduled for Aug. 17.According to court documents, Saugus police received a call from a teen who said he was robbed at gunpoint of his cellular phone and a wallet after leaving Hooters on March 31. The teen provided a description of the two men who allegedly robbed him, one as a dark-skinned male wearing a Red Sox hat, and the second male with blond hair wearing a black jacket and dark jeans.The teen claimed his friend’s cellular phone was also stolen during the scuffle. At the time of the report, the teen told police that the assailants allegedly yelled, “Don’t go to the police, we have your ID.”Police say they were unable to locate the suspects in the area of Hooters and asked several employees inside if they witnessed anything. Everyone questioned said they didn’t see anyone matching the suspects’ description.At that point, police called the Verizon Wireless Law Enforcement Services line, where they were told that several incoming calls were made at the time of the alleged theft. Since the phone is password protected, Verizon said it would have been unlikely that the suspects would have been able to make outgoing calls.Then, in the middle of the investigation on April 1, Saugus police got a call from the Melrose police, informing them that Vaughan had allegedly lied about being robbed in Saugus. The robbery actually occurred in Melrose, according to police. Vaughan admitted to fabricating the report because he told his parents he was going to Hooters and instead ended up in Melrose. A criminal complaint was then filed against Vaughan.