Charles AmofaWASHINGTON -
Prince George's County Police have released surveillance video they say shows a Chillum man kidnapping an eight-year-old girl.
It happened on July 9 at the Value Village Thrift Store in Hyattsville.
Charles Amofa, 25, is charged with kidnapping a six-year-old girl this week and sexually assaulting her in the West Park playground. He is also accused of kidnapping the eight-year-old girl on July 9 and taking her to an abandoned property nearby. But she fought off his advances and escaped.
FOX 5 showed the surveillance video involving the eight-year-old victim to an expert at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Robert Lowery, Executive Director of the Missing Children Division, says the video shows just how subtle abductions can be.
He points out that the girl is following the man and that several people outside the store loading a parked truck pay no attention to them. Lowery says they were not alarmed because the child appeared compliant.
Lowery says it is no longer enough just to tell children not to talk to strangers or to just say no to someone telling them to do something they don't want to do. He says parents should tell children to kick, scream or do whatever they can to bring attention to their situation if someone tries to grab them.
For safety tips for parents to help prevent child abductions, go to http://www.ncmec.org.
