LESSONS LEARNED

Over the past few months there has been a rash of attempted child abductions in the Tucson area.

On January 14th a 13 year-old girl was grabbed around the waist by a man trying to abduct her. He covered her mouth and told her not to scream. She did exactly the opposite and yelled until he let her go. She then went to a bus stop where other kids were waiting for the bus.

On January 19th a man in a pickup truck pointed a gun at a girl walking home from school and demanded she get in the vehicle. She ran away and escaped.

On February 5th a man in a pickup truck pulled a girl walking home from school into the vehicle. She screamed and fought with him while he drove until he pushed her out of the truck. She sustained minor injuries.

On February 11th a man tried to pull 2 sisters walking to school into his mini-van. He got the 11 year-old in the car and drove off as the 9 year-old was screaming. Neighbors came out, with one man giving chase. The multiple descriptions of the car and partial plate number quickly led police to the kidnapper. He did not have the girl at the time of his arrest. She was found later, injured and walking in a local park. She sustained the injuries when she fought her attacker.

911 tapes released in Tucson kidnapping case

Abduction of an 11-year old girl: update and arrest

Cops: Child-kidnap suspect not linked to other recent case

Man Arrested in Student Abduction Cases

Four horrific stories and 5 brave girls that did the right thing in a bad situation. The fought, screamed, kicked and yelled for help until their attackers let them go. They followed both the stay with people and go to people principles taught in Fight Like a Girl and Girls on Guard. As a result, 2 of the 3 attackers were arrested and the girls are still alive. What those girls did took courage and strength. Now, take what they did and learn from it. Don’t get in the car. Attract attention. Fight back.