Wow, our hearts are racing after watching this!
A man in Florida was arrested on Tuesday after the 11-year-old girl he was allegedly trying to abduct fought back and escaped to safety earlier that morning.
According to Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons, who later spoke at a press conference, Jared Paul Stanga (pictured above) faces charges of attempted kidnapping of a child, aggravated assault, and battery. The sheriff said the attempted abduction occurred at 7 a.m. at a bus stop in West Pensacola, and was captured on home surveillance video, which has since circulated online.
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The footage shows a knife-wielding man running toward Alyssa Bonal and trying to carry her back to his car. However, despite his size and weapon, she doesn’t stop fighting back. The two start to struggle, and the man can be seen falling on top of the girl before eventually running off without her. Ch-ch-check out the harrowing clip (below):
Wow. SO glad she kept fighting! And impressed!
At the presser, Simmons said the girl did everything right by fighting with the man and then running to tell her parents, who called police. He told reporters:
“She fought, and she never gave up.”
The girl was said to be okay, with only minor scratches and some mental trauma. She was playing with a “blue slime” toy when the abduction attempt went down, the sheriff said, adding that when police arrested the 30-year-old man, he had blue substance on his arms.
So, basically he was (sort of) caught red-handed — and it turns out, it was all Alyssa’s doing! The girl’s mother Amber told the News Journal her daughter purposely smeared the blue slime she was playing with all over her would-be abductor, knowing it would help track him down — a tactic she apparently learned by watching Law & Order: SVU!
Amber explained:
“[Alyssa] said she was able to kick and she tripped him and freed herself… She said, ‘Mom, I had to leave some sort of evidence behind, like on Law & Order SVU.’ We’ve watched probably every episode on Hulu. She’s a smart cookie, she thinks on her toes. She got that slime everywhere.”
Wow, this girl just keeps getting more impressive!
Alyssa’s story was so awe-inspiring, in fact, it caught the attention of Mariska Hargitay herself. The SVU star praised the 11-year-old for using Law & Order tactics to mark her alleged abductor, writing on Instagram:
“Alyssa, first and most important, I am so relieved and grateful to know that you are safe. And I am so honored to be part of your incredible story. You are one BRAVE, Strong and Smart young woman. I think the SVU squad might have to add slime to their crimefighting gear! Take good care of yourself and each other. With all my love, your number one fan, Mariska.”
AH-Mazing!
While speaking to press following the arrest, Simmons noted the video helped lead investigators to Stanga’s home, where he was arrested. The chrome bumper on the suspect’s vehicle had reportedly been painted black, seemingly in an attempt to change its appearance after a description of the car including the bumper was given out.
The sheriff took a moment to note how shocked he was to learn about such an incident taking place in the area, telling reporters:
“This rarely, rarely happens… When I saw the video, I was just shocked that this happened here in Escambia County.”
Sadly, it’s all too real. In fact, Alyssa told police the same white car approached her two weeks ago and the driver tried to talk to her. She had previously reported that incident to her parents and school principal.
Prosecutor Erin Ambrose said the suspect is a clear threat to the community, arguing that the suspect has a 2007 child neglect conviction that she said involved sexual allegations, and that he violated probation shortly after that. Per the Pensacola News Journal, Judge Kerra Smith set a $1 million bond for the attempted kidnapping charge, $500,000 on the aggravated assault charge and $5,000 on the battery charge.
This is about the best way a story like this could end.
[Image via Escambia County Sheriff’s Office]
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