A stranger who appeared to be in his 20s abducted a 8-year-old girl Thursday afternoon from a Denver alley, then released her an hour and a half later, apparently unharmed.
The girl was taken to a hospital to be checked but appeared to be OK, Denver police said.
The man was driving an older white van with rear doors, a sliding side door and a ladder on top.
The girl was snatched at about 1:20 p.m. as she played with an 11-year-old boy in the 400-block alley between South Raleigh and South Stuart streets.
She was found about 3 miles away at a Diamond Shamrock gas station on South Federal Boulevard near West Jewell Avenue.
Police said the girl was dropped off a block north of the gas station and walked there for help.
“This is a pretty amazing story,” Denver police spokesman John White said. “This kind of crime and result rarely happens, where the victim is abducted and released without harm.
“This little girl was incredibly brave and smart, and we’re very proud of how she reacted.”
The man was described as white with short brown hair and green or hazel eyes.
He has two tattoos on his upper right arm — the letters “SS” on the outside and, on the inside, a tattoo with letters that the children didn’t get a good look at.
He had stubble on his face and was wearing a white T-shirt, blue jeans and sunglasses.
Anyone with information is asked to call Denver police at 720-913-2000 or Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867.
There is a $2,000 reward.
“We really need to catch this guy before he gets away and abducts another child,” White said.
The boy’s mother, Lulu Apodaca, told 9News that the children were looking for a lost Chihuahua named J-Lo.
The boy told his mother that the van was parked next to a Dumpster and the man started talking to the two children.
“When they were trying to catch the dog, the guy called them to help get something into the Dumpster, and the guy picked her up and threw her in the van,” Apodaca told the television station.
The boy was not hurt or assaulted and ran to get help, White said.
Joey Bunch:303-954-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com
This article has been corrected in this online archive. Originally, due to incorrect information from sources, the age of the
abducted girl was incorrect. The
girl is 8 years old.
