An 11-year-old girl bravely fought back during an attempted kidnapping by a Florida man was arrested this past week.
According to the Escambia County sheriff, she was able to escape to safety.
“She fought, and she never gave up,” Sheriff Chip Simmons said at a news conference.
Jared Paul Stanga, 30, faces charges of attempted kidnapping of a child, aggravated assault and battery. In addition, the sheriff said he had an object that was believed to have been a knife.
The attempted abduction at 7 a.m. at a bus stop on Tuesday was thankfully captured on home surveillance video that aided lead investigators to Stanga’s home, where he was arrested.
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“This rarely, rarely happens,” Simmons said. “… When I saw the video, I was just shocked that this happened here in Escambia County.”
Simmons stated how the girl did everything right by fighting with the alleged abductor and then immediately running to tell her parents, who then contacted law enforcement.
The girl was said to be okay with minor scratches and obviously, mental anguish. The video captures a man running toward her and attempting to carry her back toward the vehicle before he stumbles and runs off without her.
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The girl was playing with a “blue slime” toy when the attempted abduction occurred, and when deputies arrested the man, he had a blue substance on his arms, according to the sheriff.
Simmons went on to reveal that the chrome bumper on the vehicle had been painted black, apparently in an effort to alter its appearance after a description that included that bumper was given out.
The girl said that two weeks ago the same white car approached her and the driver attempted to speak with her. The intelligent little girl reported that incident to both her parents as well as the school principal.