"I haven’t seen someone that terrified": CCTV of brave schoolgirl after attempted abduction
A chilling incident has shaken the quiet streets of Doncaster East in Melbourne's east, reminding us of the importance of vigilance and community support in ensuring the safety of our children.
Depicted clearly in heart-wrenching CCTV footage that surfaced recently, an 11-year-old girl's brave escape from a potential abduction has sent shockwaves through the neighbourhood.
On March 28, the young girl was making her way home from school along Landscape Drive when a grey Audi Q3 SUV made an abrupt U-turn, pulling up dangerously close to her. The driver, a male stranger, allegedly demanded her to enter the vehicle.
But the brave young girl, instead of complying with the stranger's demands, made a split-second decision that possibly saved her life; she sprinted away, seeking refuge in nearby bushes as the car ominously circled back.
The harrowing moments that followed were captured on CCTV as the girl, trembling with fear, looked back at the street, her only lifeline a stranger passing by. It was a local dad, accompanied by his own daughter, who extended a helping hand to the distressed child. Recalling the encounter, he described the girl's sheer terror:
“She was shivering and shaking and I haven’t seen someone that terrified and petrified like that,” he told 7NEWS. And when the young girl kept apologising to him over and over for asking him to escort her home, he responded: “I said: ‘I’m so proud of you, getting help is a really good skill’.”
Meanwhile, the girl's parents, undoubtedly consumed by anguish, expressed their profound gratitude to the stranger who intervened in their daughter's moment of peril. Their daughter, though physically unharmed, had endured a trauma no child should ever have to face.
As authorities launched a manhunt for the assailant, details of the suspect emerged. Described as a man in his 30s, of Middle Eastern descent with distinctive features including tan skin, black hair and a prominent beard, the perpetrator remains at large. A computer-generated image has been released by Victoria Police in hopes of eliciting information from the public.
In the aftermath of this chilling incident, Detective Senior Constable Brooke Miller echoed the sentiments of the community: “It’s horrible," he said. "A little girl should feel safe to walk home from school.”
Images: Victoria Police