Chilling video shows moment California man attempts to kidnap 8-year-old in front of dad, abduction thwarted by good Samaritans



Gripping video shows the hair-raising moment when a California man attempts to kidnap an 8-year-old boy right in front of his father. Thankfully, good Samaritans step in to thwart the heinous abduction attempt.

Adrian Villanueva was with his family enjoying dinner on Wednesday night in Ocean Beach, California. Suddenly, a man came up behind Villanueva's 8-year-old son and seemingly appeared to attempt to abduct the boy right in front of the concerned father. The boy had been playing on the sidewalk when the man allegedly attempted to kidnap the boy.

Chilling video shows Villanueva jumping into action to stop the apparent child predator from kidnapping his young son.

The alleged kidnapper reportedly told Villanueva, "This my son, this is my son."

Villanueva told KMFB-TV, "I pushed him. I said, 'No, he is not your son,' and then I tried to get him out. And that’s when he grabbed my kid, and he started running away through the street."

Good Samaritans and security guards from nearby bars helped thwart the kidnapping attempt and restrained the suspect. The man was held until police arrived to arrest the suspect.

Villanueva expressed that he initially sympathized with the suspect and didn't want to press charges.

The suspect was allegedly crying and repeatedly saying, "I miss my family."

Villanueva said, "Because my human side said this guy, he was missing his child."

However, Villanueva reconsidered after thinking about the potential for more crimes against children.

"Today was my kid, tomorrow can be someone else kid. So that’s why I'm pressing the charges," said Villanueva.

The San Diego Police Department said Christopher Higginbotham, 38, was arrested and charged with false imprisonment and battery.

Villanueva's son is traumatized over the kidnapping attempt, telling his father he never wants to go back to the area where he was almost abducted.

The boy said there are "bad people on the streets" and begged his father to never take him back to the area.

However, Villanueva is a part owner of a deli in the area that opened a week ago.

Villanueva noted, "He was crying. And then I feel so bad for him. I feel so bad. I feel terrified when I saw somebody taking my kid."

Citing jail records, KMFB-TV reported that Higginbotham is a wanted fugitive with a "history of felony convictions involving assault with a deadly weapon."

Stranger grabs 8-year-old child in Ocean Beach leaving him traumatized www.youtube.com

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Video: Bone-chilling moment Arizona man, with 'history of violence,' appears to try to kidnap 5th-grade girl walking to school



Video captured the shocking moment that an Arizona man – who allegedly has a "history of violence" – appeared to try to kidnap a 5th-grade girl in broad daylight as she was walking to school.

On Friday morning, a 5th-grade student was walking to Sunset Elementary School in Glendale, Arizona.

A local resident's security camera caught a silver sedan making a quick turn in the middle of the road and pulled over near where the girl was walking on the sidewalk. The video shows the driver park, exit the vehicle, and chase after the young girl.

Thankfully, the 5th-grader was able to outrun the suspected kidnapper.

The man calmly walked back to his vehicle.

After the girl was able to escape the suspected kidnapping, three fellow students huddled around her to provide comfort, according to neighbors.

"They hid her because the man was chasing her," Amcy Borquez told Arizona's Family.

"I think they were very brave for their age," Borquez added. "I’m telling them all day, like you’re heroes."

After reviewing the security camera video, police arrested 37-year-old Joseph Ruiz hours after the alleged kidnapping.

Ruiz was charged with kidnapping and custodial interference felony charges.

Ruiz reportedly has a "history of violence," according to authorities.

"I would note that he has a history of violence. He was convicted of an aggravated assault, a class 3 dangerous felony, after having stabbed his mother in the neck," said the state's attorney in Ruiz’s court appearance.

Nayelia Martinez – a neighbor living near the alleged abduction who has a son attending the same school as the victim – exclaimed, "Oh my god. It gave me goosebumps."

Sunset Elementary School sent a letter to parents discussing the alleged kidnapping, and said the victim noticed the suspect follow her from the time she left her apartment.

Data from 2019 shows that Arizona has the second-most missing people per 100,000 citizens, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System – a national centralized repository and resource center for missing, unidentified, and unclaimed person cases across the United States. Only Alaska had a higher rate of missing people.

Like Blaze News? Circumvent the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Video shows man attempting to kidnap girl in Glendale www.youtube.com

Armed school employee thwarts kidnapping of 11-year-old girl from playground



An armed school employee thwarted an attempted kidnapping of an 11-year-old girl in Ogden, Utah.

Around 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, a man tried to kidnap a student from the Lincoln Elementary School playground by grabbing her by the arm. A teacher confronted the kidnapper and was able to set the girl free.

The teacher instructed the 19 students who were outside to go inside the school. At that point, the man punched a window in an apparent attempt to force his way inside the school. The unnamed school employee grabbed his gun and pointed it at the intruder. While holding the kidnapper at bay, the teacher called 911.

Police arrived at the elementary school and arrested the suspect after a "brief struggle." The school was placed on brief lockdown after the incident.

The suspect was later identified as 41-year-old Ira Cox-Berry. He was booked into the Weber County Jail, and charged with first-degree felony child kidnapping.

The suspect "appeared to be high on narcotics," Police Lt. Brian Eynon said Wednesday.

Cox-Berry has no prior felony record, according to state court records, the Standard-Examiner reported.

Police said there didn't seem to be any connection between the suspect and the girl.

"We're trying to figure out if he even knows the girl," Eynon said. The girl's parents said they don't know Cox-Berry.

Police are still investigating the incident, according to a Wednesday statement from the Ogden police.

The good guy with a gun is a concealed carry permit holder and was in lawful possession of the firearm.

"He did everything that he should do to protect our children's lives here in the city of Ogden," Eynon said of the armed teacher. "Not once, but twice he confronted the suspect."

Many of the children were emotionally upset following the kidnapping attempt. A crisis response team was at the school Wednesday to console any students affected by the event, according to school district spokesperson Jer Bates.

"We can confirm nobody was injured and everybody is accounted for," Bates said. "This is definitely something that is concerning for parents and school employees, and most of all concerning for our students."

Employee thwarts attempted kidnapping at Ogden elementary school www.youtube.com

VIDEO: 11-year-old girl bravely fends off armed kidnapping suspect while at a bus stop



Surveillance video captured the moment an 11-year-old girl fought off a would-be kidnapper at a bus stop.

The suspect, whom ABC News identified as 30-year-old Jared Paul Stanga, is in custody and facing charges of attempted kidnapping of a child under 12 as well as aggravated assault and battery.

What are the details?

The incident took place Tuesday morning at a Pensacola school bus stop.

The unnamed girl was waiting for the bus when the suspect drove up in a white Dodge Journey and reportedly tried to abduct her at knifepoint.

Surveillance video of the incident showed the moment the suspect left his vehicle parked on the side of the road and rushed the child. The child attempted to run, but the suspect overcame her and the two fell to the ground. At that point, the girl was able to wrest herself away from the suspect, snatch up her backpack, and run away. Entirely thwarted, the suspect then got back in his car and drove off.

The Escambia County Sheriff's Office said that deputies arrested Stanga that same day at his home.

"Deputies worked quickly to find the suspect, the sheriff said, searching for surveillance video, tracking down witnesses, and going house to house," ABC News reported. "About 50 deputies scoured the area, including on bicycle units."

Deputies were ultimately led to Stanga's home, where they found him wearing the same clothing that matched the description of the clothing worn in the surveillance video. His vehicle was also a match for the one officers sought.

Attempted kidnapping in West Pensacolawww.youtube.com

'Caught the animal'

During a Tuesday press conference, Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons announced that deputies were able to catch the "animal" behind the attempted abduction.

"We are here to announce that we have caught the animal that tried to kidnap an 11-year-old girl this morning," Simmons announced. "At about seven o'clock this morning a white van pulled up to an 11-year-old girl, stopped the van, looked around, and then a man left that vehicle, ran toward the 11-year-old victim with something in his hand that is reported to be a knife."

Simmons added that the suspect "grabbed her, picked her up, and tried to carry her into that van."

"She fought, and she fought, and she fought, until finally, she was able to break free from her would-be captor," Simmons added.

The suspect reportedly has an expansive criminal history, including a previous charge involving a sex offense with a child, Simmons revealed.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Simmon hailed the young girl as a hero.

"We applaud the efforts and the resilience of an 11-year-old girl," he said. "She did the right thing — she fought and she fought and she fought and she never gave up. And then she went straight to her parents which she should have done, told her parents what was going on, who in turn contacted the Escambia County Sheriff's Office."

Sheriff announces arrest in Escambia County attempted kidnappingwww.youtube.com