Investigation Debunks Suspicious Man Report In Manassas: Police

MANASSAS, VA—An investigation into separate reports of a suspicious man confronting young women in early January has found the incidents were not related, according to Prince William County Police. Further, police said Thursday the incidents actually involved two separate men, neither of whom had criminal intent.

In the first incident, around 2:20 p.m., an unknown man was reported to have approached a 17-year-old girl while she was getting out of her vehicle in front of a Target store at 9900 Sowder Village Square. He told her he needed help programming a GPS device and asked her to get in his vehicle. She refused, and he drove away when two people confronted him and told him to leave.

In the second incident, around 8:40 p.m., an unknown man matching the description was reported to have approached a 20-year-old woman outside a McDonald's at 9900 Pennsylvania Avenue. He parked behind her while she was sitting in her vehicle, got out and told her to get out of the car. She refused, and he told her his phone didn't work and that he needed to get her inside his vehicle to program his GPS. She again refused, so he drove way with no further interaction.

At the time, police said no video surveillance footage was available, but their ensuing investigation included reviewing video surveillance. Thursday, they said the incidents "were only reported to police after a tweet inaccurately describing the initial encounter at the Target went viral and was viewed by one of the parties involved in the second encounter at the McDonald's."

Image via Prince William County Police