VANCOUVER, Wash. — Deputies in Clark County are looking for a man who tried to kidnap a teenage girl on her way to school Monday morning, the sheriff's office said in a news release.
A 911 call reporting the attempted kidnapping came in just before 9:45 a.m. A 14-year-old student of Heritage High School said she was walking to school on Northeast 76th Street near Northeast 122nd Avenue when a man emerged from some bushes and grabbed her from behind.
The girl told investigators that the man tried to place "some type of fabric" over her face while he held her. She was able to break away from the man and ran the remaining few blocks to the high school. The Clark County Sheriff's Office said she appeared to have escaped without injuries.
The suspect was described as a man with light brown skin, standing about 5-foot 9 with a slender build, black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing oval-shaped glasses, a black hoodie, black cargo pants, a black T-shirt and a black "COVID-style" disposable mask.
According to CCSO, the attack is believed to have happened between 8:10 and 8:20 a.m. Monday morning. A sheriff's office spokesman indicated that the victim reported the incident to the school when she arrived, then it was reported to law enforcement after her parents arrived at the school.
In a letter to families, Heritage High School said that it is cooperating with the law enforcement investigation.
"We ask that you remind your student that they should report any incidents involving strangers, either to you or to a teacher or staff member at school," Principal Derek Garrison wrote. "The safety of our students is among our top priorities."
The case is under investigation, and the sheriff's office has asked anyone in the area who may have seen someone matching that description to contact Detective Lawrence Zapata at lawrence.zapata@clark.wa.gov.
This is a developing story and may be updated with more details as they emerge.
