Tips offered for children to avoid potential kidnappings

By Michael Picarella Acorn Staff Writer

Concern for the safety of school children in Conejo Valley/Las Virgenes reached new levels following last week’s kidnapping of a 13-year-old girl in Thousand Oaks.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) offers the following tips to avoid child abduction:

1. Teach children in whose vehicle they can ride. Youngsters should be cautioned never to approach any vehicle, occupied or not, unless accompanied by a parent or trusted adult.

2. Create an atmosphere in your home where your children can confide information about uncomfortable experiences.

3. Make sure that when your child is outside, he or she isn’t alone. And teach them to always tell a parent or trusted guardian where they’re going.

4. Discuss with your kids whose homes in the neighborhood they can visit and the boundaries of where they can and cannot go in the neighborhood.

5. Make sure your children know their street address and telephone numbers, and how to use the telephone. Be sure they know what to do in an emergency.

6. Make certain that children won’t tell anyone who calls that they’re home alone.

7. Never drop children off alone at malls, movies, video arcades or parks.

"We need to be prepared to think about every eventuality, but we don’t want to dwell on the worst that could happen," said Ernie Allen, NCMEC president. "We don’t want to terrify our kids or leave ourselves paralyzed with fear."

Allen suggests that parents go over possible abduction scenarios and teach children what to do under such circumstances.

"We need to empower our children," Allen said.

Kids don’t always have to be polite, according to NCMEC experts.

Many parents stress the importance of politeness, especially to adults. That might translate in a child’s mind to: "Do what the man says." Kids should be told that it’s okay to say no, experts say, especially when the situation involves a stranger in a vehicle asking a child pedestrian to come closer.

"In this type of situation, I would suggest that (kids) go to the nearest residence and knock on that door and ask if it’s okay if they stay at that front door with whomever they find at home and ask them to call the police right then," said Sgt. Dave Wareham of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department. "Don’t go into the house––don’t go into another environment that you’re unfamiliar with."

Statistics show that most non-family abductors tend to be male, but despite the "dirty old man" stereotype, most suspects are younger than 35 years old.

In an overwhelming number of cases, according to the NCMEC, the abductors’ motives are sexual. Kidnappers often target one child and seek their confidence, often by developing a casual relationship with them.

In many instances, the victims know their abductors.

NCMEC offers some advice in case of a kidnapping: Take lots of pictures of your kids.

"Photos work when it comes to finding children," Allen said. "It’s very important for families to have recent, full-face photos of their children, as well as accurate information about their hair color, weight, height and any distinguishing physical characteristics."