6-year-old screams as man grabs and carries her away from mom at mall, CA police say
A man was arrested after being accused of trying to kidnap a 6-year-old girl at a mall with her mother and younger sibling, California police say.
Rene Lujan, 42, of San Diego, was taken into custody Thursday, June 20, in relation to the attempted kidnapping, the San Diego Police Department said in a news release.
The mom was walking beside her child, who was pushing a stroller with her younger sibling, at Mission Valley Mall the afternoon of Tuesday, June 18, when a man walked past them, police said.
The man, later identified as Lujan, started following the family “before grabbing the 6-year-old girl and lifting her off the ground,” according to police.
He carried the girl for a couple feet in the opposite direction until the girl screamed, which caused him to let her go, police said.
Lujan fled and ran through the mall, police said.
Responding officers were able to get a description of the man, along with his car’s license plate number.
After his license plate number was entered into a database, police said they were alerted that his car passed through downtown San Diego on Thursday afternoon.
Shortly after, police said, Lujan was pulled over on State Route 94 and taken into custody.
The same day as Lujan’s arrest, there was “a second attempted kidnapping of a 5-year-old girl with very similar circumstances and suspect description” at the mall, police said, adding that they are working to see if the two attempted kidnappings are related.
This story was originally published June 21, 2024 at 12:44 PM with the headline "6-year-old screams as man grabs and carries her away from mom at mall, CA police say."
