Update: Bus Stop Encounter is On Police Department's Radar

Update: Sarasota Police report they caught up with the man who offered the kids cash Tuesday morning. No charges were filed since no crime was committed, but police said they did inform the person that the stop did cause alarm and that he “need not do it again.”

Earlier:

The Sarasota Police Department is on the hunt for a vehicle it says pulled up to a summer school bus stop Tuesday morning, raising alarm bells among the children gathered.

The incident took place around 7:45 a.m. A 10-year-old girl and three other kids were at the stop on 24th Street and Dixie Avenue when a man in a silver car approached and “asked them strange questions and offered money,” an email from the agency to media stated.

The vehicle’s passenger, police said, held $2 out of the window and asked the kids if they’d had breakfast. The vehicle then backed up several feet and the passenger held out a $5 bill and asked the 10-year-old directly if she wanted it. When the girl said no, the car left heading south on Dixie Avenue, the email said.

The girl went home and told her mother about the incident. The mom, in turn, called Sarasota Police. Now officers would like to speak with the vehicle’s passenger.

The vehicle is believed to be a silver four-door Hyundai. Police say the passenger was a black male in his 30s. He had short hair and was wearing a black T-shirt. Police say the man never left the vehicle and none of the children approached him.

A surveillance photo of the vehicle involved has been released. Anyone who recognized the car or knows the man is asked to call the police department at 941-316-1199 or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers by calling 941-366-TIPS (8477) or going online to www.sarasotacrimestoppers.com.

No further details are available at this time.

Photo courtesy of the Sarasota Police Department