Woman Says She Was Nearly Kidnapped At Gas Station Near Carowinds

CHARLOTTE, NC — York County Sheriff’s Office has launched an investigation into a alleged attempted kidnapping at a gas station near Carowinds after a woman said she was nearly pulled into a vehicle by a man driving a white Ford Taurus, according to a report.

The woman told WSOC that the incident occurred as she was waiting for her mother to pick her up. She said she noticed a man watching her as she waited, then he attempted to pull her into a white Ford Taurus.

"He reached over and said, ‘Come on. Let’s go,’” the woman told WSOC. "He was, like, ‘It's too cold to be out here. I can get you a room, but you need to go.’ I was, like, ‘No.’”

A good Samaritan at the gas station noticed what was happening and stepped in, she told the station. "He said, ‘You were about to be a victim for human trafficking,’ and I said, ‘That's how I felt,’” the woman said.

Investigators are also looking for a white work van, the report said.

Human trafficking and prostitution continue to be a major issue near the amusement park straddling the North Carolina and South Carolina border. The York County Sheriff’s Office made about 20-30 prostitution arrests on Carowinds Boulevard last year, WSOC said.

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