'It’s very terrifying.’ Mom says man tried to lure daughter away in East Flatbush
Diandra Thomas says her 9-year-old daughter is used to walking home from school by herself daily.
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A Brooklyn mom is pleading for help to find the man she says tried to kidnap her daughter in East Flatbush.
Diandra Thomas says her 9-year-old daughter is used to walking home from school by herself daily.
But the daughter says that one Thursday afternoon, her two-block commute was anything but routine.
“When I was walking home, I was right here, and there was a man waving at me,” said the 9-year-old. “Then I waved back. Then he said, ‘Come in my car.’ I was thinking to just walk home fastly, just in case of what would happen.”
Thomas says she was on FaceTime with her daughter the entire time, as she walked towards Rutland Road and Troy Avenue.
She didn’t hear the man trying to lure her child, but says her daughter’s instincts to speed up may have saved her.
“It’s very terrifying as a single mom just trying to go to work,” said Thomas. “God forbid, I could be giving out posters saying, ‘Missing child.’ It’s heartbreaking that my 9-year-old had to go through that. It’s like three schools over here. Kids are walking all the time. It's 3 p.m., broad daylight. He didn’t care.”
Thomas tells News 12 that she’s posted on social media, warning parents about what happened. Since then, others have responded to her, sharing that they’ve witnessed similar incidents.
“These are kids,” said Thomas. “These are minors. You should not try to tell no child to come to your car. You should not be waving at no child. That is disgusting behavior. I just want the NYPD to do their job and look for this man.”
Police say they’re looking into the matter but have not made any arrests.
