Two Mill Creek boys report luring attempts

Published 10:39 pm Tuesday, June 19, 2007

MILL CREEK – A man apparently tried twice Tuesday to abduct elementary school-aged boys in Mill Creek, police said.

The man first tried to grab a boy off his bicycle in the Cherry Park area as the boy rode to school before 8:30 a.m., Mill Creek police spokesman Steve Winters said.

Later, the man approached a second boy in the Huckleberry Division area. Police think the man was trying to lure the boy somewhere.

Both boys were unharmed, Winters said.

The man is described as between 40 and 50 years old, with a stocky build and a slight belly. He was scruffy and had dark brown or black hair.

He was wearing a gray T-shirt or tank top, a red baseball cap, headphones and blue jeans. The man was last seen attempting to wave down a brown, older type vehicle. It’s not known if the man was picked up by that car.

School officials sent home a letter with students at Mill Creek, Cedar Wood, Silver Lake, Woodside and Penny Creek elementary schools, and Heatherwood Middle School.

School officials said the boys did the right thing by immediately reporting the incidents to teachers, who called police.

In the letter, school officials reminded parents that students should walk to school in pairs and be alert to their surroundings. Anything suspicious or unusual should be reported to a responsible adult. And students should tell their parents where they are going and when they expect to arrive.

Police asked anyone with information about the abduction attempts to call 911.

Reporter Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437 or jholtz@heraldnet.com.