RCMP in Salmon Arm say the details in the report of a second case where a teenaged girl was approached by a stranger in a vehicle make it unlikely the two are linked.
On Jan. 29, a 14-year-old girl is reported to have been approached my a man in a vehicle in the South Canoe area, near the South Canoe Alternate Learning Centre. The witness reports the man stopped his car and told the girl to “get in or else.” The girl ran away, not stopping until reaching Little Mountain Park.
The description of the suspect differed from the Jan. 24 incident. In the most recent one, the girl described the suspect as having gelled hair, which was shorter in the back, a goatee and glasses, with a clip-on sunglasses attachment.
The car was described at a dark grey, two-door model.
The incident was reported to police six hours after it occurred, making it more difficult for police to try and identify a suspect.
“Without wanting to create undue alarm, it can be a good time to review safety precautions about strangers with your children,” says Staff Sgt. Kevin Keane. “But these cases do not seem to be connected.”
In the Jan. 24 incident , police are looking for a man in a late-model beige Oldsmobile in connection with what appears to be an attempted abduction of a teenaged girl.
Police say a 17-year-old girl was walking along 30th Street NE about 10 a.m. on Jan. 24 when the man attempted to lure her into his vehicle.
The man initially approached the girl in his car, pulling up beside her and asking for directions.
She did not respond.
He then asked if she wanted a ride and grabbed her hand. The victim was able to pull her hand away and flee the scene.
The suspect is described as an older man, unshaven with greyish brown hair that is thinning at the top.
The Oldsmobile has some rust and various dents on the side.
Police in Salmon Arm are asking anyone who may be able to identify the suspect to contact the local RCMP Detachment or Crime Stoppers.
