Michaele Salahi Abducted, Says Tareq

Now this is bizarre: Tareq Salahi has reached out to TMZ because he thinks wife Michaele has been the victim of a publicity stunt, er, kidnapping. Salahi, who is of course famous for crashing a White House dinner with his wife and then moving on to a stint on Real Housewives, says he last saw Michaele at their Virginia home yesterday morning, and she was supposedly about to go to the hairstylist. She skipped the appointment and hasn't been seen since, and Salahi says the cops aren't taking him seriously.

Late last night, he claims, Michaele called him from an Oregon number he didn't recognize, and said she was en route to her mother's house. But Salahi called her mother, who lives near them, and the woman said she hadn't spoken with her daughter. Then things get truly strange: Salahi then called the sheriff's department, and deputies said Michaele had already called, informed them she was fine, and said she was dealing with "family issues." Now Salahi is convinced Michaele is being forced to make the weird calls by her abductor. A true emergency, or a reality show stunt? (More Michaele Salahi stories.)