The Mississippi Bureau of Investigations Monday night verified that an Amber Alert about two juvenile females being kidnapped was a false alarm.

“The Jones County Sheriff’s Office received information from citizens in the community concerning an Amber Alert involving two juvenile females who had reportedly been abducted by an unknown subject driving a Jeep Liberty vehicle,” Sheriff Alex Hodge said in a press release Tuesday.

“This information quickly spread throughout the community, surrounding counties and other states within hours causing many concerned citizens to be in a state of panic,” Hodge said. “After receiving several calls concerning the alert, I immediately contacted the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations, which is responsible for certifying all Amber Alerts in Mississippi.”

A representative from the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations verified that the Amber Alert was false and Hodge also immediately made contact with local and neighboring agencies to notify them that the Amber Alert was not valid. The media was notified so that the public could be informed that the Amber Alert was bogus.

Warren Strain with the Mississippi Department of Public Safety said cellular text messages have been circulating about the false Amber Alert and verified it is a hoax. He encouraged those who received the Amber Alert not to forward the bogus message.

The sheriff’s office encourages the community to contact the Sheriff's Department if you have any information regarding the source of this bogus Amber Alert by calling 601-425-3147 or Crime Stoppers at 601-428-Stop.