Everett police arrested a man in his 40s after investigators say he tried to lure several girls into his minivan at Walter E. Hall Park.Police said south patrol
Everett police arrested a man in his 40s after investigators say he tried to lure several girls into his minivan at Walter E. Hall Park.
Police said south patrol officers were called to the park Aug. 5 after a community member reported an older man in a minivan was following a group of girls and trying to get them into his vehicle.
Officers interviewed three girls between the ages of 11 and 13.
One of the girls told police she was walking to the park when a man pulled up and asked where she was going. He offered her a ride to the park, but she refused, according to police.
When the girl arrived at the park, she noticed the man appeared to be waiting there, police said. He continued talking to her and inviting her into his vehicle, at one point offering her alcohol.
A community member noticed one of the girls appeared to be uncomfortable and asked if she was OK. While they were talking, the minivan left the park, according to police. The community member then called 911.
As officers responded, one located a vehicle nearby that matched the description of the suspect's minivan. Police contacted the driver at the registered owner's address.
The man denied being at the park and had changed his clothes, police said. Because of the clothing change, the girl was unable to confirm whether he was the man who approached her.
Investigators then used license plate reader data to piece together the vehicle's movements to and from the park around the time the girls were approached, according to police. A pan-tilt-zoom camera at the park also captured the driver's presence there.
Eight days later, on Aug. 13, officers with the Everett Police Department's Violent Crime Unit received an automated alert from the city's license plate reader system indicating the suspect vehicle was traveling on West Casino Road.
Officers responded and took the man into custody.
He was booked into the Snohomish County jail for investigation of luring a minor, police said.
