Police Searching For Drivers Who Tried To Lure Boy
Dec 23, 2019, 6:16 PM | Updated: 8:46 pm
RIVERTON, Utah – Don’t talk to strangers. Those wise words likely paid off for a Riverton boy who says he was followed home by two mystery men. And his family says the evidence was caught on a doorbell camera.
Ten-year-old Grayden Dowland says he was walking home from basketball practice just two doors down, near 4500 West Dutchman Ln. around 6 p.m. last Thursday.
That’s when he saw a white car. He says two men inside rolled down the window and said hi.
“Then they said do you want some candy? Get in the back. And that was my signal to run,” said Grayden.
Surveillance video shows what happened next. Grayden is seen running to his porch. He nervously looks back to see if the car is still there. It is, so Grayden tries to open his front door, but it’s locked.
The video then shows Grayden picking up rocks, throwing them towards the car and yelling, “Mom! Get away! Get Away!”
The car pulls forward a little, but doesn’t drive away. So Grayden ran to his neighbor’s house for safety and went right in the front door.
Grayden’s parents were just as shaken up.
“To come home and watch the video and see it firsthand and see how scared he really was, it’s pretty crazy,” said Dave Dowland.
They released the surveillance video on Facebook and it’s been shared hundreds of times. Their hope is that someone will recognize the car, or know who the suspects are, and turn them in.
“I just hope it doesn’t happen to anybody else. Hopefully they can catch these guys,” said Dowland. “It’s kind of cliché and everyone says you never think it’s going to happen to you, and to have it happen right on your doorstep, I mean it doesn’t get any closer to home than this.”
Police are taking the report very seriously and have increased patrols in the neighborhood. They say they’re looking for a white, newer model 4-door sedan. Anyone with information is asked to call Riverton Police.
