Local

Police: Man tried to abduct 7-year-old girl

ATLANTA — Atlanta police are searching for the man they said attempted to kidnap a 7-year-old girl in northeast Atlanta Wednesday night.

Police released a sketch of the man Thursday.

Investigators told Channel 2's Amy Napier Viteri the girl was walking home with her sister and a friend when the incident happened.

"I was terrified and my first reaction was to just go toward where the incident happened," said the girl's mother, who Channel 2 Action News is not identifying.

Investigators said the man was in a truck and asked the girls where they were going. When they ignored him he got out and walked toward them.

"(He) pulled her arm to get her in the car and my other daughter and a friend they pulled her arm the other way to keep her from getting in the car," the mother said.

According to police, the man covered the girl's mouth so she couldn't scream. When the other girls struggled to pull her away he eventually took off in his truck.

"It was just a blessing first and foremost that the guy didn't get them in the truck," the mother said.

Detective John Egbert with the Atlanta Police Department described the suspect as driving "a black pickup with silver rims being driven by a black male (with a) bald head, probably about 50 years old."

The girls gave investigators that description of the man, who they said had a mustache and chin hair.

Egbert said the quick actions of the other two girls, ages 9 and 12, could have made all the difference.

"I'm very, very cautious of letting them run free and just letting them be alone by themselves now," the mother said.

If you recognize the man in the sketch you are asked to call Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477.