A Florida woman helped save two little girls from a man allegedly trying to kidnap them Sunday in the suburb of Fish Hawk, according to local reports.
The unidentified woman was standing outside a church on Sunday when she noticed a man following two young girls on a bike, according to Fox13. The woman said she knew something was wrong and that the man was lying after speaking with him.
“I saw two children on their bicycles and a male adult behind them,” she said, according to the report. “One of the little girls was mouthing to me, ‘Please help me, this is not my dad. He was kind of talking over her, right behind her, putting his arm around her neck and saying something in her ear, saying, ‘We just moved here, we just want to see how we can help do whatever you’re doing.’ I engaged in conversation with him. I said, ‘Oh that’s nice, where did you move here from?’ He said, ‘Oh, I am not really sure.'”
Churchgoer saves two young girls from abduction after one secretly mouths ‘help me’ https://t.co/IwYggkVg4Z
— The Independent (@Independent) June 15, 2022
The woman invited them all into the Church until she had a chance to call the police, the report continues. (RELATED: REPORT: Employee at KFC Helps Save Woman Who Was Kidnapped And Left Secret Note).
The man, 37-year-old David Daniels, was arrested by Hillsborough County officers on charges of false imprisonment of a child and child abuse, FOX13 reported. He was found walking back downtown after the 9-1-1 call was made.
“He did not know these children and these children definitely did not know him,” said Jessica Lang of Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, according to WFLA. “Members of this church really stepped up to protect children that were not theirs. They saw that something was wrong and they saved these children.”
Police said Daniels began following the girls from a local restaurant around 6:00 p.m., offering to “supervise” them, WFLA reported. He then proceeded to hit one of the girls over the head before they made their way towards the Church, the report continues. The two girls, both under 12, told police they believed they were being kidnapped, according to FOX13.
Daniels was arrested by the Foley Police Department in Alabama for allegedly trespassing into a home just days before Sunday’s incident, according to KIRO7. He is currently being held at the Hillsborough County Jail on a $104,000 bond.
“I don’t want any recognition for this,” said the unidentified woman, according to FOX 13. “I don’t want to be a hero. I just did what I hope anybody would do for my own kids.”