California authorities arrested a man on March 30 whom they’ve accused of trying to kidnap a 4-year-old.
A statement that was issued on Tuesday, April 7, by the Culver City Police via Instagram said that it was on March 30 that Marlo Jeffrey Hempstead sauntered over to Fox Hills Park, where they claim he tried to lure the child away from its parent.
The alleged luring incident reportedly happened shortly before 1 p.m.
Police said that they were called about a possible kidnapping attempt at the park’s playground area, and that officers rushed to respond. After speaking to eyewitnesses, police learned that the man was wearing a red hoodie when he approached the child, instructing them to follow him.
The child’s parent and another passerby spotted the awkward interaction and ran over to intervene.
“When the parent and community member approached, the suspect walked away from the playground and left the area,” police said. “At no time was the child physically taken or harmed.”
Patrol cars started sweeping through the entire park, looking for the 57-year-old suspect.
Before long, officers managed to locate a person matching the suspect’s description inside a vehicle that was parked in the structure of a nearby shopping center.
Hempstead was immediately handcuffed and has since been charged with attempted kidnapping.
Plea and attorney information was unavailable for the man.
Similarly, a man was arrested on New York’s Long Island late last month, also during an alleged attempted luring.
Police said that Carlos Corte-Corte allegedly led a 4-year-old girl straight out the back exit of The Laundry Kingdom of Patchogue before leaving the area with the child.
Investigators said that he waited until her mother was distracted with a load of laundry before coaxing the toddler to leave.
The alleged kidnapping attempt occurred just after noon on March 28, according to a statement from police. The mom was in the laundromat with another of her children when she realized that the girl was missing.
The missing child was located soon after inside a nearby library.
Corte-Corte, 38, was charged with kidnapping and endangering the welfare of a child. He has been placed on an ICE hold, meaning that federal officials have requested he be detained until they can begin deportation proceedings.
The Department of Replica Luxury Handbagland Security said Corte-Corte is from Ecuador and illegally entered the U.S. “on at least three occasions in 2020 and was removed each time. He chose to commit a felony and illegally re-entered the U.S. a fourth time at an unknown place and time before attempting to kidnap the child.”
