It started with a frantic 911 call: a mother claiming her 3-year-old daughter was kidnapped by a white man in Delaware. The nation was on alert. An Amber Alert was issued. Descriptions went viral. But by morning, the horrifying truth unraveled.

Darrian Randle, 31, wasn’t telling the truth. Police say she confessed to striking her daughter with a belt up to 20 times. When the child became unresponsive, Randle and her boyfriend allegedly hid the body — wrapped in plastic, stuffed in a suitcase, and dumped behind a vacant lot.

The girl’s remains were found less than a mile from the home. Authorities say bleach was used to clean the scene, and a blood-stained blanket was recovered from the boyfriend’s vehicle.

Now Randle faces murder and child abuse charges, while her boyfriend is charged as an accessory. Police say the mother made up the kidnapping to hide the crime. But what kind of person invents a story like that?

This case has sparked national outrage — and left neighbors terrified. Could anything have saved Nola?