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SALT LAKE CITY — A 29-year-old man was arrested Friday night, after Salt Lake police say two girls fought off a kidnapper in the Sugar House neighborhood.
Salt Lake police began investigating information they received about an alleged kidnapping attempt near the Interstate 80 overpass and 700 East, according to a press release sent out Saturday.
A man jumped out of the bushes, grabbed a 12-year-old girl by the wrist and began pulling her, Salt Lake police spokesman Brent Weisberg said, before the girl and her friend fought back, managing to break the man's grip and flee.
The children flagged down someone driving a car, who stopped and helped the girls, Weisberg said. Police are trying to identify the driver, because "detectives believe that person may have critical information to this case."
Officers searched the area, and "later found 29-year-old Mason Andrew Musser nearby and arrested him," the release states.
"Violent crime of this nature is very rare in Salt Lake City," according to the police. "It's important for parents and guardians to have age-appropriate conversations with their children about safety, including what to do if approached by strangers and how to respond in potential dangerous or unwanted situations."
No charges have been filed, but Musser is currently in the Salt Lake County Metro Jail for investigation of attempted child kidnapping.
