Screams Foil Attempt to Kidnap Girl

A 5-year-old girl’s screams scared off a potential kidnapper who left a trail of blood when he cut himself climbing into her bedroom in Huntington Beach on Sunday night, police said.

Police are looking for a man in his 30s, about 6 feet tall, with short brown hair. He was last seen wearing a green shirt and dark shorts.

The girl was sitting at a desk in her room about 9:10 p.m. in the 8900 block of Riverbend Drive, when the intruder removed the screen from her open window and climbed in, said Huntington Beach Police Lt. Dan Johnson.

“He put his hand over her mouth, she screamed, and her dad and uncle came into the bedroom,” Johnson said.

The intruder then jumped through the window and ran away. The girl’s father and uncle chased him through their apartment complex and to a small strip mall, where the man was last seen running west.

The girl was terrified but unhurt.

“It’s very rare to have this happen in Huntington Beach,” Johnson said. “Seldom do we have an attempted abduction of a child.”

Johnson said the girl’s relatives did not recognize the man.

The attempted kidnapping case has elements similar to the kidnapping of Polly Klaas, which had a much more tragic ending.

Almost seven years ago, Polly, 12, became the focus of an international search when she was abducted at knifepoint from her bedroom slumber party while her mother slept in another room. The kidnapper, who had a long criminal record, frequented a park near her home. After Polly was found murdered two months later, a foundation was formed in her name.

“It’s great that [the Huntington Beach girl’s] dad and her uncle were within earshot and could hear her scream,” said Jenni Donnelly, hotline director of the foundation. Police are asking for help in finding the man who tried to kidnap the girl. Anyone with information should call (714) 375-5066.