Current:Home > reviews'We are so proud of you': 3 pre-teens thwart man trying to kidnap 6-year-old girl -CapitalCourse
'We are so proud of you': 3 pre-teens thwart man trying to kidnap 6-year-old girl
View
Date:2025-04-18 18:12:37
Three Washington girls are being hailed as heroes after they stopped the attempted kidnapping of a 6-year-old girl.
Police got a 911 call about a man abducting a young girl at an apartment complex in the Seattle suburb of Kent just after 8 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Kent Police Department.
Police said a witness told 911 dispatchers that they had witnessed the man picking up the young girl while she screamed and that the man did not appear to be a relative. The eyewitness gave officers a detailed description of the man.
When officers arrived at the scene, they quickly found a man matching the description. He tried to flee but officers quickly detained him, they said.
Soon after police learned about the pivotal actions of three 11-year-old girls who had been there, saying in a news release that the girls showed "selfless bravery" and "stepped in without pause" to help the 6-year-old.
Man used ice cream truck to lure children in the complex, police said
Witnesses told police that an ice cream truck had entered the apartment complex, attracting a group of children.
As three pre-teen girls were headed to the truck to buy some treats, they noticed a man holding the wrist of their 6-year-old neighbor, police said.
The 6-year-old’s brother, who was nearby, called to the girl to come to him but she could not break the man's hold, police said.
"The girls stated she looked afraid, and the man appeared to be pulling her forcibly along," police said. "They could hear her telling the man to let her go. They began to follow because it was obvious to them that she was trying to get away and they were sure he did not know the victim."
Girls work together to stop attempted kidnapping
Using their phones, the girls began to record the man, telling him to leave the younger girl alone, police said.
The man picked up the 6-year-old girl and tried to “speed walk” away from them, police said, but the girls kept following him. They asked the man if he knew the girl and he said he did but the girl shook her head no, police said.
Police said the man then put the girl on the ground and began to run away. The girls took the 6-year-old back to safety and her parents confirmed that the suspect was a stranger.
Missing teen found safe:14-year-old Utah girl missing 2 weeks in Mexico found safe; uncle facing kidnapping charge
Man detained and faces kidnapping charges
Police said that the suspect is a 40-year-old local man and that he was arrested on kidnapping charges and booked at the King County Jail.
“The little girl is now safe, the man is in jail, and we are impressed beyond words at the maturity and protectiveness displayed by these preteen girls,” the police department said in a statement. “We are so proud of you. You are amazing.”
USA TODAY reached out to Kent Police Department but have not heard back yet.
Ahjané Forbes is a reporter on the National Trending Team at USA TODAY. Ahjané covers breaking news, car recalls, crime, health, lottery and public policy stories. Email her at aforbes@gannett.com. Follow her on Instagram, Threads and X (Twitter) @forbesfineest.
veryGood! (36922)
Related
- Average rate on 30
- Roger Daltrey unveils explosive Who songs, covers with cheer and humor on solo tour
- Report finds Colorado was built on $1.7 trillion of land expropriated from tribal nations
- A week of disorder in Cleveland, as City Hall remains closed after cyber threat
- Meet first time Grammy nominee Charley Crockett
- RFK Jr. offers foreign policy views on Ukraine, Israel, vows to halve military spending
- Brittany Mahomes Sizzles in Red-Hot Fringe Gown at Super Bowl Ring Ceremony
- Washington man spends week in jail after trespassing near Yellowstone's Steamboat Geyser
- B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
- Rhode Island lawmakers approve $13.9 billion budget plan, slew of other bills
Ranking
- McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
- Vietnam War veteran comes out as gay in his obituary, reveals he will be buried next to the love of my life
- Stock market today: Asian shares mixed after AI hopes nudge Wall St to records. BOJ stands pat
- Are prebiotic sodas like Poppi healthy? Here's what dietitians say after lawsuit filed
- Nearly 400 USAID contract employees laid off in wake of Trump's 'stop work' order
- Bebe Rexha calls G-Eazy an 'ungrateful loser', claims he mistreated her post-collaboration
- ‘Tis the season for swimming and bacteria alerts in lakes, rivers
- Virginia's Lake Anna being tested after swimmers report E. coli infections, hospitalizations
Recommendation
Costco membership growth 'robust,' even amid fee increase: What to know about earnings release
G7 leaders tackle the issue of migration on the second day of their summit in Italy
US diplomat warns of great consequences for migrants at border who don’t choose legal pathways
Supreme Court strikes down Trump-era ban on bump stocks for firearms
Biden administration makes final diplomatic push for stability across a turbulent Mideast
Top US bishop worries Catholic border services for migrants might be imperiled by government action
Conor McGregor fight vs. Michael Chandler off UFC 303 card, Dana White announces
Kaitlyn Bristowe Says She's Working Through Held On Anger Amid Ex Jason Tartick's New Romance