For one 10-year-old girl, a trip to the corner store almost turned tragic. While walking down the street with her 2-year-old brother, a man tried to kidnap her off a street in South Philadelphia. Amazingly, the whole horrifying crime was caught on surveillance cameras.
The video shows the man pull his car to the side of the road, wait for the kids walking hand-in-hand to pass by, then jump out of the car to sneak up behind them. He grabs the little girl, muzzles her mouth with his hand, and tries to run off with her, but she bit and kicked him, defensive moves her father says she learned from watching Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
Police say he was also scared off by her brother's startled reaction. "Ultimately, with the screams from this little boy and by her account [the victim] says the child literally screams louder than anything she's ever heard before, he literally interrupts this assault," said Captain John Darby. The suspect is still on the run, but thanks to the cameras, they have a good description of the man and his car.
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We hear about children being snatched all the time. Usually, as we listen to the police describe what they think happened, we may try to piece together a picture of the crime in our mind. But to see it actually unfold right before your eyes is truly terrifying.
See the young girl's scary ordeal here:
What's your reaction to seeing an attempted abduction play out before your eyes?
Image via violet sugar/Flickr
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Comments 55
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When I was seven years old I was in the mall with my father standing five feet away and some creep tried to grab me. I did exactly what this little girl did and he let go. I think she did exactly the right thing and every child should be taught this. However, she should not have been allowed to go out with her two year old brother alone. It's not just perverts we have to worry about, but also things like drunk drivers or your child getting lost. As a mother I would never let my son go out alone. He's too precious to risk his life like that. I know that even though I will never let him walk anywhere alone that he will grow into a mature child. You don't have to risk your child's life and safety to raise them properly.
i agree with butterfly freak as scary as it is you cant stop your kids from living. you just have to teach them. my son is 7 and my daughter is 4 and they play outside all the time but i am consistantly doing the same things butterfly mom was talking about as far as making them check in as well as me going out and checking on them and spying on them when they are not looking. they have to face some things for themselves and how to be cautious. when i was 10 i was walking the streets by myself but i was also looking over my shoulder every 10 steps i took. glad she is alright its scary to think what that man wanted to do to her
WOW! I don't let DD leave without her phone ... this is horrifying
I use to live in Philly and isn't safe to walk around by yourself or with someone no matter how old the person maybe. I'm glad the little girl was able to get away but a parent should have been with them.
i agree she should not have been walkkin dwn the road by her self yet alone wit a 2yr old.. But i disagree wit shes too young to watch SVU, cuz my 7 yr old watches it. and has been since she was around 3. Itr helps her realize that there are bad ppl out there, and ppl who can hurt her.
You can teach your children to be independent and how to protect themselves without putting them in harms way. It doesn't matter how many times a kid is looking behind them. Knowing a predator is coming doesn't deter one. Also, maturity isn't going to help her handle an unpredictable two year when he darts off into oncoming traffic. Maybe you could let your kids do this 30 years ago without hysteria, but these are different times.
My ten year old daughter knows karate and knows how to seriously injure someone if she needed to. Having said that, she still does not go anywhere without my husband, myself or her 17 yr old brother.
I think it's best to let each parent decide what is a reasonably safe environment for their kid, since it totally depends upon where you live and the maturity of the child. And let's not forget that this type of kidnapping is rare. Statistically, 3/4 of all kidnappings are done by a relative or acquaintance. Your child is much more likely to be a runaway than a victim of kidnapping!