Attempted child abductions have police looking for links
Calgary police are investigating any possible links between a potential child abduction attempt in the Saddleridge area on Friday afternoon and reports last month about a suspicious person in an Airdrie school zone.
Police say a man approached a 13-year-old girl who was walking along Saddlebrook Drive N.E. around 12:45 p.m. on Friday.
The man was driving what is believed to be a white 2005 to 2010 Honda Odyssey and asked the girl for directions. He allegedly had his pants and underwear around his ankles, exposing himself when he did this, according to police.
“The girl declined to speak to the man and attempted to leave,” police said in a news release last week. “As she did so, the man pulled his pants up, exited the vehicle and approached her from behind. He opened the sliding door on the van and attempted to shove the girl in. The girl kicked the man and ran. The driver followed her in the van until she entered her home.”
Police described the man as being in his mid- to late 30s with a heavy build and said he was wearing a green long-sleeve shirt, blue jeans and a blue tuque at the time.
Last month, RCMP said they were investigating two separate reports of a suspicious man and vehicle in a local school zone. The incidents occurred in the area of Sagewood Boulevard and Sagewood Drive in Airdrie.
Mounties said a man driving a white minivan stopped next to a female who was walking home from school and offered her a ride around noon on Feb. 1.
She was quick to refuse and ran from the area.
A second incident happened around 2:40 p.m. on Feb. 24 when the male driver of a white Dodge minivan got out of his vehicle and appeared to be following a child, according to RCMP. The child ran away and the man went back to his van and left the scene.
He was described as having “darker skin” with a thin, dark beard, and being “shorter in height.” He was wearing brown Timberland shoes and a black leather jacket.
Calgary police released an image of a suspicious vehicle believed linked to the Saddleridge incident, taken from security camera footage, in the hopes of further locating and identifying the suspect.
Police are asking for anyone with any information to contact the police at 403-266-1234 or through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 and calgarycrimestoppers.org.