MISSION VIEJO : Parents Are Warned of Suspicious Man

A report that a suspicious man approached a Linda Vista Elementary School student prompted a note of warning this week to parents from school administrators.

Notes were sent home with the school’s 900 students Thursday, said Kathy Dick, the school principal. The note described the reported incident and urged parents to discuss safety precautions with their children, Dick said.

However, one sheriff’s official has termed the incident a “non-event that has become an event.”

The incident, which was reported to the school administration by a student, took place on Tuesday afternoon when a man in a tan and brown “Mustang-type” car approached a girl who had gotten off a bus in Laguna Hills, Dick said. The student was frightened but not hurt, she said.

Dick said a report was filed with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.

“We encourage boys and girls to tell us anything that is suspicious, so we certainly have had other such reports,” Dick said. “We never ignore a report like this. Although they usually turn out to be nothing serious, we always treat the reports seriously.”

Sheriff’s Department Lt. George Johnson called the incident a “kind of a non-event that became an event.”

Johnson said a man drove up near the girl and “did a poor job of parking,” winding up halfway over the curb.

“The guy said nothing, did not flash or chase the girl. But something about the way he did the parking thing made the girl feel threatened,” Johnson said.