Crime & Safety
UPDATE: Attempted Child Abduction Was False Alarm, Sheriff Says
The Paulding County Sheriff's Office says they found the man suspected of the attempted crime, but he cooperated and has been cleared.
DALLAS, GA — The man who authorities were looking for on suspicion of an attempted child abduction has been found, according to the Paulding County Sheriff's Office. He has been fully cooperative and is believed not to be guilty of the attempted crime he was initially suspected of.
Around 6:10 p.m. Wednesday, an 11-year-old girl was walking her dog in the 300 block of School Road, in the Burnt Hickory community in Dallas, when a man pulled up to her and told her to get in, she told authorities. The girl ran home and told her mother, a release says, who called 911 around 6:12 p.m.
Deputies responded immediately, but couldn't find the suspect.
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Surveillance footage from a nearby camera showed a white van in the area, similar to what the girl said the man was driving.
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Authorities were later able to find the man. He was at the time delivering for "a popular package delivery service," the release says.
Investigators reviewed the vehicle's GPS and compared it to the time stamps on surveillance footage and determined he didn't make any stops other than dropping off a package.
He said he saw the 11-year-old girl walking the dog and slowed down because she was close to the road, adding that he didn't stop or talk to her. He said he may have been on his phone, as he was unfamiliar with the area because he usually delivers in Douglas County.
Detectives spoke with the girl, who said she wasn't sure if the man was talking to her or into his cellphone. She was scared, the release says, causing her to run home and talk to her mother.
"At this time, due to the inconsistency of the alleged juvenile victim's story combined with the fact that the male delivery driver has been more than cooperative, there will be no charges filed in this case," the release says.
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