Posted at: 09/24/2009 12:16 PM
Updated at: 09/24/2009 6:46 PM
By: Beth Wurtmann

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Cops search for car after abduction attempt

Schenectady police are looking for the white car seen in this surveillance photo. A 12-year-old girl says the man behind the wheel tried to abduct her.

SCHENECTADY - Police in Schenectady are putting parents on notice -- don't let your kids walk to and from school alone.

That's after a 12-year-old girl says a man in a car tried to abduct her as she walked to Mont Pleasant Middle School Thursday morning.

Police say this happened at the corner of Craig and Strong streets in Hamilton Hill.

"I have a 9-year-old who walks to school everyday by himself. But after this he is not going to school by himself anymore," Craig Street resident Alicia Esquivel said.

More Information:

Alert issued to parents from Schenectady City Schools

Esquivel is in disbelief that a man may have tried to abduct a girl on her block. Esquivel has seven children herself.

"There's no telling, my daughter could come out here one day by herself and she could be gone the next, because of this," she said.

Police say the 12-year-old was walking alone on Craig Street around 7:30 a.m. when a man driving a four-door white car circled around her several times.

"About the third time around, the vehicle stopped and [the driver] indicated to her, 'Get in the car, get in the car.' He said it a couple times, he was waving his arms to get in the car," Sgt. Eric Clifford said.

But police say the young girl didn't listen to the man.

"She did the right thing. She started running away from him towards some kids that were walking in front of her. She yelled for help. She got away from him," Clifford said.

Police say there were no direct witnesses. However, Thursday afternoon they released a surveillance photo from a city-installed camera just up the street, where they say the suspect could have turned. It shows a white four-door white car that police are hoping someone will recognize.

They are also urging parents to make sure their children don't walk alone.

"Kids need to be together or parents need to be with them. I'm with my kids in the morning and I meet them in the afternoon," Schenectady resident Laura Hoffman said.

Police say they are looking for a dark-skinned man in his 30s with short dark hair and who was wearing a blue-collared shirt, driving a white car like a Dodge Neon. They plan to release a sketch of the suspect based on the girl's description.

They say the young girl is very shaken after this ordeal, but is okay.