For the second time in the last two months, Mercer Island Police Department (MIPD) officers and detectives are actively investigating a reported luring incident that occurred on the Island.
In the current case, officers were called to the 2400 block of 63rd Avenue Southeast at about 8:30 a.m. on July 22 regarding a report where an adult stranger approached a child and asked the youngster to enter his vehicle.
“The child immediately notified their parents and officers were dispatched to the scene. The child is safe at home,” MIPD said in a press release, adding that the incident took place outside the child’s home.
Officers quickly arrived on scene, canvassed the area and conducted interviews with the child’s family and neighbors to piece together the situation. According to the child’s mother, the same unknown adult may have contacted the child the previous day but the mother didn’t notify MIPD.
MIPD said the incident remains an active and open investigation and no additional information was available to report on at press time.
“The Mercer Island Police Department takes every report it receives seriously and uses an abundance of caution when those reports involve children,” MIPD said.
If residents have any information about this incident, they can call the MIPD non-emergency dispatch line at 425-577-5656.
On the afternoon of June 5, MIPD began investigating a possible attempted luring incident that transpired near a residence in the 7700 block of Southeast 76th Street. The elementary school-aged children involved immediately sought help from a parent, no one was hurt and there was no active threat to the community after the incident was reported, according to the MIPD and Mercer Island School District.
MIPD crime prevention coordinator and community outreach liaison Cpl. Bobby Jira told the Reporter in a recent story that crime prevention education starts at a young age. While speaking with classes at preschools and elementary schools, Jira stressed for kids to dial 911 from their cell phones if they possess one, know their address and to be wary if a stranger approaches them.
“I tell people the most important thing is to yell ‘stranger, stranger’ and run to somebody you trust, whether it be a teacher, a police officer, maybe somebody who works there,” said Jira.
MIPD said there is currently no evidence linking the two events, which are both under active investigation.
NATIONAL NIGHT OUT
In the crime-prevention and community-connection realm, MIPD officers and officials will participate in National Night Out 2024 from 5-8 p.m. on Aug. 6.
According to MIPD, the event — which will feature a meet-the-chief ice cream social at the Mercer Island Community and Event Center and neighborhood block parties — is designed to increase awareness about police programs like the Neighborhood Watch Program, drug prevention, Paws on Patrol, emergency preparedness, and other crime prevention and safety efforts.
