Kapolei parents on guard after attempted kidnapping
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KAPOLEI, Hawaii (KITV) — Honolulu police are searching in this neighborhood for a man who tried to lure a 10-year-old boy into his car.
HPD says on Tuesday night a man in a dark blue SUV offered the boy who was walking his dog, tickets and candy.
“It is just around your corner. It could be your neighbor,” said Kapolei mom Alani White. “As a girl mom, it’s really hard to hear things like that, really scary.”
The incident has parents in Kapolei on guard.
“You’d like to think living in paradise like things like that aren’t going to happen,” she added. “And sadly, that’s just not the truth of it.”
The boy told police he ran home and was unharmed, but the suspect fled the scene.
“It puts a knife in my gut, for my niece, as well,” said Daniella Hare, a mom who lives in the neighborhood. “I mean, I see them both as my kids. To think that happens to other kids around this tight knit small island, it’s scary. It’s really scary.”
Police were searching Maunakapu and Kamailehope Streets for video surveillance.
“The threats are always out there, but it’s good to be aware and informed about these things, to be safe about them, especially with such young children,” Hare said. “So just vigilance, very vigilant, teaching children what to say, to know to go to safe adults, flagging someone down or telling another older child who knows a good adult can sometimes be like such a saver for them.”
According to HPD, there have been 100 kidnapping offenses so far this year, compared to 139 in 2023 and 166 in 2022.
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