The stranger was walking past the family when he turned to follow them about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, San Diego police said. He grabbed the girl and started to walk off, but released her when she screamed.
San Diego police are looking for a man they say tried to kidnap a 6-year-old girl in the Mission Valley mall, snatching her up and starting to walk off then releasing her when she screamed.
The girl was next to her mother and was pushing her younger sibling in a stroller on the east end of the mall about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Lt. Daniel Meyer said. They walked past a man, who then turned around and began to follow the family.
He suddenly grabbed and lifted the girl, then walked a few feet in the opposite direction. The child screamed. He let her go and fled, headed west through the mall.
Meyer described the suspect as a Latino man who appeared to be about 40 years old, about 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighing about 160 pounds.
He had collar-length black hair, with a beard and glasses. At the time of the incident, he was wearing a bright baby blue shirt, gray pants, and white tennis shoes.
Police asked that anyone with information about the man or the incident call the department’s Eastern Division at (858) 495-7900 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.