Man in van followed us, 3 Warren kids tell police

Staff report

WARREN

Warren police say the public should be on the lookout for a man in his 50s who has been approaching children in a white van over the past several weeks in Southwest Warren.

At least three reports since Oct. 11 involve the same man, police believe.In the first, a 10-year-old boy said he was walking home from school on Fifth Street Southwest near Hayes Avenue at about 3 p.m. when a white van appeared to be following him.

The boy ran to Fourth Street with the van still following. It stopped following him when he got to Second Street, the boy said, adding that he thought the man yelled something while following him.

Another child told police she saw the van several times this month, saying the man inside was wearing a mask over the bottom of his face.

On Thursday, a 13-year-old girl reported a white van following her on Hayes Avenue Southwest near Second Street after school.

The vehicle pulled up beside her, and the driver “told her to get in,” police said.

The girl reported that this was the third time the driver had tried to get her into the van in the past week.

The van had no windows on the sides and no markings on it, the girl said. The boy described the van as having tinted windows.

Sgt. Jeff Cole, spokesman for the Warren Police Department, said children and adults should watch for any type of vehicle following children, not just a white van.

“It’s very important [for parents] to let their kids know this is going on,” Cole said. “We want it reported [to police] if someone approaches the children, or report it to school,” he said. “It’s happening over and over, so it’s on the [police department’s] front burner.”

Cole said children who are approached by a vehicle should run away to a neighbor’s house or any house and make some noise.

“Get someone’s attention,” he said.