Good Samaritans Save Blind Man’s Daughter From Kidnapping
A San Diego man has been arrested for attempting to kidnap a 6-year-old girl numerous times from her blind father. The attempts were thwarted by a group of good samaritans including a homeless man.
The incident went down on Aug. 18 when Cesar Palma and his daughter Selena were using public transportation to go from Long Beach to Westlake.
CBSLA reports that the two encountered 24-year-old Elijah Lopez who asked if he could take the girl home.
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“This overt action caused the commuting public that was on the train to step forward and tell Mr. Lopez to leave the family alone,” LAPD Capt. Alfonso Lopez told reporters Wednesday. “One would think that would stop his action, but it did not.”
When the two departed the train, Lopez continued to follow them, prompting the good samaritans to intervene again.
“His overbearingness while walking to the bus line was so obvious and disturbing to additional Angelenos, that they in turn stepped forward and told Lopez to leave the family alone,” Capt. Lopez said.
“He began mimicking our 6-year-old victim’s action, trying to create a relationship which was so outlandish,” Capt. Lopez added.
When the father-daughter duo got off the train to walk home, Lopez attempted to grab the little girl’s hand. Once again the good samaritans stepped in, and her dad screamed for help. The good samaritans were identified as Mr. Johnson, a homeless man from the neighborhood, and Ms. Machado, who lives there. Police were called and they later arrested Lopez.