WOODLAND-
Police are continuing their search for a man who tried to pull a 31-year-old woman into his white pick-up truck on Sunday afternoon.
The woman was walking between cars when a man opened the door to his truck to block the woman’s path then grabbed her hair at about 3:30 p.m. Her screams brought a passerby, whose intervention scared the man off.
Officers say the woman did the right thing in putting up a loud fight.
“You want to fight with all your might because you never know what the intentions of the individual are and often times it will end poorly if they get you inside the vehicle,” said Sgt. Steve Guthrie of the Woodland Police Department.
Guthrie says a person has to make up his own mind on whether to intervene depending on the circumstances, but there should be no doubt about calling 9-1-1.
Frequent shoppers at the Westgate Shopping Center which is home to a popular Raley’s supermarket and a Starbucks often used by law enforcement officers is an unlikely place for a daylight kidnap attempt.
Ernesto Villanueva who owns the razz frozen yogurt shop says there’s rarely any serious incidents in the center. He suspects the suspect might have known the woman.
“They must have known the person or something….there’s too many witnesses, there’s too much light,” said Villanueva.
Police aren’t saying if the suspect and victim know each other. It’s a disturbing development for those who frequent the center.
“You think you can go out in the middle of the day and things will be just fine, but it’s not,” said shopper Sharon McAnally.
For now police are warning holiday shoppers to beware because criminals often stake out retail parking lots looking for a chance to steal.
“Don’t walk like a victim, don’t be looking at your cell phone, if you’re walking walk with purpose, and keep your eyes alert,” said Sgt. Guthrie.
The kidnapping suspect is an Hispanic male in his late 30’s with a burly build, dark hair and a mustache. He was wearing a light blue hooded sweatshirt, green sweat pants and no shoes. His vehicle was described as a white compact 1990’s pick-up truck.
Anyone with information on the suspect can call Woodland Police dispatch at (530) 666-2411.