Crime & Safety

Man Tries to Snatch Girl in Virginia-Highland Home

The 12-year-old girl reportedly screamed and shoved to escape the man, who had followed her into her home.

 

The Atlanta Police Department is looking for a man who followed a girl into her Virginia-Highland home and tried to force her to go upstairs with him.

Police described the suspect as a white male with a large build, possibly in his 30s, with blond hair that is a little longer than a crew cut.  He was wearing blue jeans and a blue jacket and drove away in a gold colored sedan.

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The incident happened Thursday morning after the 12-year-old girl rode her bike to Inman Middle School and realized she had left something at home. She returned home and, intending to dash in quickly for the forgotten item, left the door open.

According to a news release from APD:

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"While the juvenile was inside a male entered the home.  The juvenile told the male to leave but he did not and told her to go upstairs and began to move toward her.   At that point the juvenile screamed, pushed the male out of the way and ran from the home."

The man left and fled in a gold sedan.

A woman who posted a comment on a Virginia-Highland email group identified herself as the child's mother. The woman said her daughter had noticed the car pass the house twice before the incident happened, but thought the driver was merely lost. The women said that after the man entered their home, he grabbed her daughter, who kicked and screamed to free herself.

"Thanks God for her, and for us, she did everything right, and she is okay," the woman wrote.

Patch is not naming the family to protect the girl's privacy.

Residents are asked to be on the lookout for anyone acting suspiciously and to call 911 to report suspicious activity immediately.

Police ask that anyone with information on this suspect contact the Atlanta Police Special Victims Unit at 404-546-4260 or Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477.


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