A manhunt was under way yesterday for an extortionist who attached what turned out to be a fake bomb to a terrified teenager in a drama described as “like something out of a Hollywood movie”.

Madeleine Pulver, 18, a member of one of Sydney’s wealthiest families, endured a horrifying 10-hour ordeal after a masked man strapped a device around her neck at her home in the exclusive suburb of Mosman.

A note was left at the scene and police were treating it as an extortion attempt.

“Certainly the instructions were precise, they were such that led us to believe that we were dealing with a very serious and legitimate threat,” said Mark Murdoch, assistant commissioner of New South Wales state police.

Nearby properties in the street of million dollar homes were evacuated and roads were closed off in an drawn-out operation involving the bomb squad, rescue officers, fire crews and paramedics.

The device, attached to the schoolgirl by a chain, was eventually removed before midnight on Wednesday and she was reunited with her parents.

“She has woken up this morning in pretty good spirits,” said her father William, chief executive officer of Appen Butler Hill, a languages consulting and software company.

“She is a little tired, a little sore from holding this damned device in place for about 10 hours.”

Police described the incident as “a very, very elaborate hoax”.