Keep Your Children Safe

RCMP Warn Of Child Luring At Schools

A third suspicious occurrence at a local school yesterday afternoon is prompting Nanaimo RCMP to issue a parents advisory around the safety of their children.

Yesterday afternoon a ten year old male student at Bayview School, located at 140 View St reported being approached while on recess by a black haired male who tried to take him into a waiting van. This occurred at approximately 1: 00 PM . Police investigated and spoke with a number of school ground supervisors and students but were unable to glean any information about the suspect’s clothing, age or the vehicle. The child was not injured in anyway.

Two prior occurrences are also being investigated. On May 28th at 5:45 PM a ten year old boy was approached by a male as the youth walked near the intersection of Departure Bay Rd and Newton St. The suspect male offered him a sucker in exchange for a ride, in what was reported as a small 2 door black pickup, possibly with Alberta plates. The youth did not accept the treat and carried on. The suspect male was described as being between 30-40 with black hair.

The last incident was reported on May 19th at 12:00 PM at Oceane School, located at 1951 Estevan Rd. Police were told by teachers that several students had reported seeing and talking to a male standing on the outside of the fence surrounding the school. The male said a few words to them then left. He was described as wearing dark clothing , a dark baseball hat and was carrying a black/grey packsack.

Parents are urged to discuss following safety tips with their children:

1. When walking to school , stay with friends at all times. Always walk on the sidewalk or side of the road and be aware of who and what is around you at all times. Do not put your child’s name on their backpacks.
2. If a car stops near you and the driver asks you to come over to the car, stay at least one arms length from the vehicle.
3. Never get in the car or lean into it.
4. If someone in the car tries to grab at you ,yell, scream and run away.
5. Talk to your child about a password to be used when other people are picking them up.
6. While at school always stay on the school grounds,
7. Report suspicious people or incidents to your teachers or parents as soon as possible.
8. Make sure your kids know how to use 911

Anyone with information on any of these incidents is asked to contact the Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345 or call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-847(8477). You can also go online at www.nanaimocrimestoppers.com