Kent Police: Second attempted kidnapping in less than a week
Jul 22, 2024, 8:04 AM
Kent Police have reported a second attempted kidnapping in less than a week involving an underage individual. (Photo courtesy of the Kent Police Department)
(Photo courtesy of the Kent Police Department)
A 911 caller contacted Kent Police July 19 — three days after a different attempted kidnapping incident in Kent was thwarted — after an unknown adult male reached inside a window of the caller’s home and grabbed their young daughter.
“Officers quickly arrived in the area and were notified by the child鈥檚 parents that while she was in the bathroom, an unknown male had reached into the window, threatened her and grabbed their daughter by the hair,” Kent Police wrote on social media. “He pulled her upwards as if to take her through the window.”
Failing to take the girl from the home, the suspect ran off in an unknown direction. Multiple K9 units and Kent officers, with assistance from King County Sheriff鈥檚 Guardian 1 helicopter, searched for the suspect, but were not able to find him, as of this reporting.
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The suspect is described as an adult black male between 5 feet, 6 inches and 5 feet, 9 inches in height. Kent police said he was described to be “on the thinner side” who’s bald with some facial hair. He is approximately in his early 40s and was wearing a blue hoodie during the incident.
Kent Police have asked the public that anyone who lives near this address to check their cameras before and after 10:46 p.m. Friday night for footage of the suspect.
“If you believe you have caught the suspect on video or have any other information about the suspect or this incident, please send a message to KPDTipLine@kentwa.gov or call our tip line at 253-856-5808,” Kent Police wrote.
Second Kent attempted kidnapping in less than a week
The Kent Police Department (KPD) credited three 11-year-old girls for stopping a kidnapping at an apartment complex Tuesday.
On July 16, at approximately 8:18 p.m., multiple Kent Patrol officers were dispatched to an East Hill apartment complex after a 911 call was received describing a male suspect attempting to take or kidnap a small girl. The caller told 911 that they had witnessed the man pick the girl up while she screamed. The 911 caller believed the man did not appear to be a relative.
Before the 911 call, three girls — each 11 years old — were getting ice cream from a local ice cream truck when they saw an adult man forcibly holding the wrist of their 6-year-old female neighbor.
According to witness testimonies with KPD, the girls said the 6-year-old girl looked afraid, and they could hear her telling the man to let her go. They began to follow because it was obvious to them that she was trying to get away from the older adult man.
The witnesses eventually started to record the incident with their phones and approached the man to tell him to leave her alone.
As the 11-year-old girls approached with their phones recording him, he picked up the child and tried to “speed walk” away. The girls persisted further, noticing the 6-year-old victim shook her head when they asked the man if he knew her, which he said he did.
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“At this point, he put the victim down on the ground and they grabbed her away from the suspect, who then fled on foot,” Kent Police stated. “They took her back to the safety of her apartment. The parents later confirmed that the suspect was a stranger.”
The suspect, Hayder Albu Mohammed, 40, was arrested and charged with attempted kidnapping. A judge set his bail at $250,000. According to , the kidnapping suspect initially asked the 6-year-old girl to help him with his prayer beads, claiming he didn’t do anything wrong. He had several apparent defensive scratches on his arms indicating the girl tried to fight him off.
“The little girl is now safe, the man is in jail, and we are impressed beyond words at the maturity and protectiveness displayed by these preteen girls,” Kent Police’s statement continued. “Without their intervention, the excellent description of the suspect from the 911 caller, and the swift response by multiple KPD Officers, the outcome would have changed dramatically. This outcome took a village. We love our village.”
Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories聽here聽and you can email him聽here.
