DELTONA, Fla. – Update: Authorities said the 13-year-old girl who reported a possible abduction attempt wherein she was forced into a white van in Deltona made up the story. The 13-year-old will be charged with filing a false police report.
Sheriff's Office officials said they are still investigating the other two incidents.
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Authorities were investigating three incidents Friday after three students said they were approached by strangers Thursday in Deltona, according to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.
In the first incident, an 11-year-old boy who serves as a safety patrol officer at Osteen Elementary School said he was walking to his patrol post around 7:30 a.m. when a white man approached him and grabbed him by his patrol belt, deputies said.
The boy told deputies he was able to break free and run to report the incident to school employees.
Deputies said the boy described the man as tall with a thin build, and standing near a pickup truck. The boy also said the man was wearing a black hoodie and had a tattoo of an eagle head on his right index finger above his knuckle, according to the Sheriff's Office.
In another incident Thursday, a 13-year-old girl who attends Galaxy Middle School said she was walking with headphones in her ears after she was dropped off by her school bus when a man grabbed her and tried to throw her into a white van at the intersection East Dana Drive and Florida Drive, deputies said.
The girl said she was suddenly grabbed from behind, so she started kicking and screaming until a woman in a red vehicle pulled up yelled at the man to stop, deputies said. The man then let go of the girl and fled in the white van, the girl told authorities. She then ran to a nearby church to report the incident.
That girl's mother said that her daughter is now scared to walk to school alone.
"I'll be driving her in the morning to the bust stop and I'll be sitting their waiting before she gets there. I hope they can find who it is because it's just ridiculous," Becky Rodriguez said.
Deputies said the girl described the man as white with a tall, thin build. He is also believed to have short hair with a brown, scruffy beard, according to the Sheriff's Office.
In a third incident Thursday, a 12-year-old girl told deputies she was walking to her bus stop at East Normandy Boulevard and Troy Avenue shortly before 8 a.m. when she heard footsteps and noticed a man walking behind her. When she arrived at the bus stop, she said the man was not there, so she sat down to text her mother.
While sitting at the bus stop, she said she noticed the same man staring at her from a parking lot across the street, deputies said. The man left the lot once other students arrived at the bus stop, the girl told authorities.
The girl said she was walking home from school later that afternoon when she saw someone behind a house that is under construction near East Normandy Boulevard and Troy Drive who appeared to be the same man she noticed in the morning. She continued walking home and no longer saw him anymore.
When she arrived at home, she told her mother and the two drove around the area, but were unable to locate the man, deputies said.
The girl described the man as black or Hispanic and said she believes he was in his 30s or 40s. He was wearing a black hoodie, gray sweatpants and black shoes, according to the girl.
Deputies said they had not immediately identified any suspects and that it's unclear whether the incidents were connected.
Detectives are still investigating the cases, but offered the following tips to help students remain safe while working with law enforcement:
- Whenever possible, walk with other students in groups.
- Be aware of your surroundings at all times. Make sure you know who and what is around you.
- If something happens, the sooner you report it to law enforcement, the quicker they can investigate the incident.
- Help deputies by being observant: Be able to describe the suspect’s face, unusual characteristics, body build, height and the vehicle, if there is one.