TITUSVILLE, Fla. – Titusville police said they're investigating a mother's call for help after she told authorities a man attempted to kidnap her daughter.
Police said it happened at 12:45 p.m. Saturday at the Little League fields at W.W. James Park.
The girl bit the stranger to save herself from being forced in the man's car, according to an incident report.
The girl's mother told police that the man drove by in a convertible with a white stripe on the side and with the top down. The man told the girl to get inside, saying he would give her candy and a toy, the report said.
The girl refused but the man insisted, grabbing her arm. The girl bit the man and ran away, according to the report.
"She did it right. She got away and that's all that matters," said Bill Leonhard, who lives across the street from W.W. James Park and is the assistant karate instructor at PKSA Space Coast Karate in Titusville.
As a grandfather and self-defense teacher, he said this incident shows why even children should know how to protect themselves.
"I hate saying this, but there's some weirdos out there that just don't care," Leonhard said. "Everybody needs to be aware when there's kids around."
The neighborhood is rallying behind that idea.
Zach Sands applauded the girl's parents for teaching her to be aware of her surroundings.
"It shows you've got to retrain your kids and say, 'Hey, if something like this happens, bite them, kick them, scratch them, scream for help, do what you have to do,'" Sands said.
The would-be kidnapper is believed to be in his 60s. Police said there were no other witnesses.
PKSA Space Coast Karate said in light of this incident, it will focus its kids' class Wednesday night on teaching children specific self-defense techniques instructors say can be used in this kind of situation.