Police Warn of Attempted Kidnappers in South Bay

A 27-year-old woman told police that two men tried to kidnap her after she got off a bus this morning in Manhattan Beach, but were apparently scared off when they spotted a nearby patrol car.

The woman said she had just stepped off the bus at Sepulveda Boulevard and Eighth Street and was walking north on Sepulveda to 11th Street when a black, late-model Honda Civic with tinted windows cut her off, according to Stephanie Martin of the Manhattan Beach Police Department.

She told investigators that two men got out of the car, grabbed her and tried to pull her into the Honda, Martin said.

The woman, whose name was withheld, said she was only let go because the suspects saw a police car nearby. She then saw another police car and flagged it down.

Officers were alerted to look for the car and the suspects, who had not been found as of late this afternoon.

The victim suffered minor scratches to her forearms and her shirt was torn during the struggle, Martin said.

The driver was described as a black man in his 30s, about 6 feet tall and bald, with a black shirt, blue jeans and a tattoo behind his left ear. The passenger was a man in his 20s, about 5 feet 6 inches tall, wearing white pants and a light blue shirt.

Anyone with information about the suspects was asked to call Manhattan Beach police at (310) 802-5127.

City News Service