Police in New Jersey are searching for a man who they say attempted to lure a 13-year-old girl into his car as she walked to school Thursday morning.
According to Westwood Police Chief Frank Regino, the man offered the girl a ride in his four-door gray hatchback on Lafayette Avenue in Westwood Township. When she declined, the man, who told the girl his name was Richard, then asked to pick her up after school. She said no and he drove off, Regino said.
"We want everybody to be aware, to be on alert and call us if you see anything," Regino said
News of the attempted luring spread quickly through the area, where parents and kids have been on edge after five other recent luring attempts in surrounding towns.
A police sketch of the suspect wanted in Thursday's luring attempt did not resemble two other police sketches of suspects wanted in the previous attempts.
The Westwood Regional School District posted a detailed notice about the incident on its website, and advised parents to educate their kids about stranger danger.
“I am telling them just what the school did,” said parent Kwan Choi. “Be careful, be careful of strangers."
