11-year-old in park is grabbed by man mistaking her for his own daughter, WA cops say

An 11-year-old was playing alone at a Washington park when a man grabbed her, thinking she was his daughter, police said.

The girl was swinging at Lieser Crest Park in Vancouver on Aug. 18, police said in a probable cause statement.

She then saw a 36-year-old man appear from the bushes and walk toward her, police said.

That’s when she told police she got off the swing and started walking away because she felt uncomfortable, according to the probable cause statement

He grabbed her from behind and said “you’re my daughter,” police said in the report.

She screamed until he let her go, and the man ran back to a vehicle and drove off, police said.

The child ran to a woman in the park, who police said later yelled at the man.

He told authorities he has a 13-year-old daughter who lives near the same park with that woman, but he hadn’t seen his daughter since 2023, police said.

He told police he believed his daughter was who he was approaching at the park and tried to hug.

Police arrested him two days later on suspicion of fourth-degree assault and unlawful imprisonment, but official charges haven’t been filed.

Police said there was not probable cause to charge him with kidnapping.

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