Man in custody for attempted kidnapping in Sterling Heights tried abducting child an hour before arrest
CLINTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (FOX 2) - The 23-year-old man accused of trying to abduct a girl at a Sterling Heights park Tuesday afternoon also tried kidnapping another juvenile less than an hour before in Clinton Township, police say.
Police were dispatched to the Clinton River Road around 1:30 p.m., later learning that an individual had tried forcing a Clinton Township female into his vehicle. According to police, the suspect grabbed the victim around the head and attempted to force her into the rear door of his vehicle.
A resident nearby intervened, allowing the victim to flee and alert police, later calling 911. The suspect then fled in a white sedan.
The Clinton Township Police Department was later notified that a second abduction attempt happened in the city of Sterling Heights and that an arrest had been made.
On Tuesday, FOX 2 spoke to the uncle of a 7-year-old girl who had been at North Clinton River Park when a man tried abducting her. Dylan Childers, who was there with his wife, their 8-year-old son, and the victim said the suspect "pulled up in a car, and he got out and ran after my niece, grabbed her by her hair and carried her to the car real quick."
His wife then jumped into the car, grabbed the steering wheel and fought the suspect off.
Childers' 8-year-old son tried to help too, but was injured in the process.
A volunteer citizen in the area responded to the fight and intervened - eventually pulling the suspect out of his car and holding him until police arrived.
"Due to the outstanding job by the aunt of the 7-year-old, our volunteer citizen and the officers who arrived quickly on scene, a very dangerous suspect was taken off the streets, and a 7-year-old girl was saved from being further harmed," Sterling Heights Police said. "We will pursue every possible felony charge the law will allow against this individual."
The suspect, who was booked in the Macomb County Jail on charges of assault and kidnapping, is expected to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon.
"We at the Clinton Township Police Department wish to extend our gratitude to all individuals who came to the aid of the juvenile female victim in this incident. In addition, we also wish to relay our appreciation to those involved in thwarting the second abduction attempt in the City of Sterling Heights," Clinton Township police said in a release.
Attempted abduction of 7-year-old girl thwarted in Sterling Heights
"Unbeknownst to our officers, the suspect was wanted for a previous attempted kidnapping in Clinton Township earlier in the day," according to Sterling Heights police.