Sorry, nothing illegal or punishable about buying a ticket and getting on a bus.
Now, if she had of staged it to look at though she had been kidnapped, like leaving a ransom note, etc., then yes, punish her.
Yeah, she should but I don't think she is obligated to pay for a search. Any of us can get in our car and leave whenever we want to. We probably all think about it at some point but most of us think things thru. She should have to answer for the false report though.