When she was found Thursday afternoon in Merced, she told police she'd been abducted at knifepoint.
However, as Glendale police brought her home, she admitted the story was a hoax and told detectives she took a bus and train to Central California.
Police say Salas faked the kidnapping to avoid telling her parents that she had dropped out of UCLA two years ago.
It's now up to the city attorney to decide whether to file a civil claim against Salas for the cost of the search.
