Deputies Search For Man Accused Of Trying To Pick Up 10-Year Old
PEMBROKE PINES (CBSMIami) - A 10-year-old victim is speaking out after a frightening experience Monday afternoon when she said a stranger chased her after she got off a school bus.
"I was terrified," said the victim. "I was very scared."
CBS4 did not show all of the victim's face in order to protect her identity.
She told CBS4's Peter D'Oench, "I was thinking why was he doing this to me? Maybe he had been following me after I got off the bus."
The victim is speaking out just two days after the incident because she and her family and Pembroke Pines Police are eager to capture the man who frightened her and could have hurt her.
Police say the incident happened at 2:40 Monday afternoon as the 5th grader was getting off her school bus at Pines Boulevard and Northwest 108th Avenue.
She said she saw a stranger sitting under a bush next to the sidewalk.
"I saw him when he got up and he started chasing me. I ran into a development and I was screaming for help," she said. "That's when he ran back to his car and drove off. I've never seen him before."
She said she's safe because she acted quickly and remembered the advice that her parents had always given her.
"My mom told me not to talk to strangers and if they are chasing me I should run off and scream for help," she said. "Those are the steps my parents told me to take. And I did it."
The victim spoke out as Pembroke Pines released a composite sketch of the suspect in this case.
Detectives describe him as a white male, in his late 20s, 175 pounds. He was last seen wearing a white and blue striped sleeveless t-shirt and blue jean shorts. He has tattoos on both arms, both legs and his neck. That tattoo has a heart design.
Police say he has short black hair with pierced ears with the initial "S" and a pierced bottom lip with a blue hoop. He was driving an older model red, faded Toyota Camry with a stripe across the back of the window. Police say the tag had the numbers 94 in it.
The 10-year-old victim said, "He had short black hair and a goatee. He was wearing a blue striped shirt."
D'Oench asked her, "What would it mean to see this man caught?"
"It would mean a lot," she said.
CBS4 also did not show all of the father's face in order to protect his identity.
"I'm very relieved that she is safe," he said. "But I am upset that someone would try to do that. I am very happy about what she did. She's outspoken and a very good kid. She's a great listener. She gave a good description and know her surroundings. And that was very important to this investigation."
Pembroke Pines Police Captain Carlos Bermudez said, "I think it was incredible what this girl did."
Bermudez told D'Oench that this incident could have had some very serious consequences.
"We don't know what this individual was going to do or what might have happened," he said. "That's why this was alarming."
Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact the Pembroke Pines Police Department at (954) 431-2200, email to Tips@ppines.com or call Broward Crimestoppers at (954) 493-TIPS (8477).
