The Juneau Police Department released additional details Monday about a man suspected in the attempted abduction of a fifth-grade boy last week.
JPD described the suspect in a release. He is a man in his 30s or 40s who weighs between 180-220 lbs. He has olive-colored skin and short, black curly hair with some gray hairs interspersed. He also had a few days growth of facial hair, but not a full beard. He drove a dark green four-door sedan similar to a Nissan Maxima.
The attempted abduction happened Thursday afternoon, when the man tried to talk the boy into his car as the boy was getting ready to leave Gastineau Elementary School at the end of the school day. The man said he had been sent by the boy’s family to pick him up, but could not come up when a password established by the family for just such an occasion when the boy challenged him for it. The boy rode home on his bicycle, where his mother reported the incident.
Anyone with information on this attempted abduction is asked to call JPD at 586-0600 or visit juneaucrimeline.com. People using the website can remain anonymous.
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This is unexcepatable!
I have lived in Juneau since my early teens after growing up on Oregon. Every day I worried about kidnappers and had to be taught strict rules for walking home from to or just playing outside out of sight of my parents. I now have two children of my own who I have felt blessed that my biggest worries for them outdoors is beats and porcupines. This man makes me so to ruin the safety I have felt raising my kids here. Many times I have wanted to move to a bigger place yet gave stayed out of the ideal surroundings I thought I was raising them in. Shame on this man for putting the fear in parents on our town and kiddos to this child's parents for preparing him for what should have never happened. Today I will be making sure my children too have passwords. I hope with every ounce of the mother on me that JPD is able to track this man down and that the DA sees fit to punish him to the full extent of the law!
scary....
scary that is man didn't further try to follow this boy home on his bike and force him into his car. Password a great idea, but I would have additionally instructed my child to go back into the school and tell authorities and call his mom, NOT ride home anyway. Glad in this case it turned out ok.
I echo FairReader
With two daughters of my own in a landlocked town, I thought this kind of thing just wouldn't happen because it would be next to impossible to get away with it here. Guess I was wrong. Take the best, and realistic, safety steps you can parents. Balance the desire to let kids be kids with a savvy safety plan.
Heard one a week or two ago
Heard one a week or two ago about a young kid walking home by the crossing light across egan next to safeway. On the opposite side from safeway, a drunk guy attacked this 10-12 yr old kid. Kid was coming home from a karate class! Gotta be careful who you attack! Kid got hit once and didnt get hurt but scared and got away. Guess he got a couple of good hits in before he ran. Gotta teach kids how to protect themselves. Best protection is to not get attacked and the password and go back in the school is a good idea.
Another tip....
Agree with what has been said here. Clearly for kids a good offence is the best defense. It's sad and difficult to balance with kids safety information they need to know, vs "icky" stuff about the world around them you don't want them to know yet.
I also think telling kids to run back inside the school is a good move.
Here's something that I heard years ago that stuck with me. Oprah (yeah, yeah, I know) was doing a show featuring women who'd been horribly attacked (one woman was attacked in her home by another woman who tried to surgically remove and take her baby). ALL of these women said:
At some point, whether it was opening the door for someone, inviting them in, sharing an elevator - ALL of them had "that feeling" - you know the one, the creepies, the hair standing up on the back of your neck, etc. And ALL of them ignored it, either thinking they were being silly, or in an effort - so ingrained in all of us - to be POLITE. Kids need to know to trust themselves, and that if they feel wierd, they don't have to be polite just because the other person is an adult.
A cop friend of mine told me
A cop friend of mine told me that sex predators are sent to Juneau from around the state to do their time and they are released to Juneau's streets when they have served their time. Can anyone corroborate or refute this? Might help explain why the map of registered sex offenders in Juneau shows a pretty high population....
http://www.city-data.com/so/so-Juneau-Alaska.html
That's a good description of
That's a good description of the perp, hopefully they find him quick.
@ Blackdog- I have heard that before too, and the high population of these sick punks prove it, it's messed up. My family and I live by a school and we have 7 pedophiles that live within a mile of us.
@kpawsuh- That's the first I'd heard of that. Poor kid was probably traumatized, because of some stupid drunk.
There is a lot of unacceptable behavior going on in this town. People who bring harm to women and kids need to have a "good talking to." That's a nice version of what I really want to say should be done to em, but can't say on here.