AURORA | Police on Monday offered a $10,000 reward for information about a man suspected of snatching an 8-year-old girl from her north Aurora bedroom Sunday night.
Aurora police chief Dan Oates said investigators have been working on the case “nonstop” since midnight Monday in an effort to find the man.
“We are treating this matter extremely seriously. We believe there is a predator out there and he needs to be caught,” Oates said.
Police are asking anyone who knows anything to call Detective Christine Hurley at 303-739-6113.
Police said the suspect is white man with blond hair driving a newer model silver or gray BMW sedan. The man smelled strongly of cigarette smoke, police said.
Oates said the vehicle could be a different make that looks similar to a BMW, but investigators think it is “probably” a BMW.
As the man fled with the girl, police say the girl yelled for help and broke free.
Oates said the girl made “quite a fuss” and that commotion could have been the difference between her being taken and the kidnapper dropping her.
“Who knows if that might have saved her life,” Oates said.
The girl’s father ran outside and found the girl, police said. The father told police he saw the BMW drive south down the alley between Hanover and Havana streets, then head west on East 16th Avenue.
The girl sustained only minor injuries when the man dropped her, police said.
Oates said investigators have been in contact with local schools and warning parents to be vigilant and report any suspicious behavior.
Police hope to release a composite sketch of the man later Monday, Oates said.
As of Monday morning, investigators appeared to have completed their work at the home. No crime scene tape was visible and the only police vehicles noticeable on the street was one police cruiser parked about a block from the one-story green house where the kidnapping happened.
Neighbors said it was scary to think a child could be snatched from their own home.
Lawrence Chambers, 41, lives across the street from the house and said he saw police cars around midnight but didn’t know what happened until he saw a story on the news Monday morning.
“I felt terrible,” he said.
The block of Hanover between 16th and 17th avenues is the same one where a father was charged early this month with child abuse resulting in death after police say he head-butted his 3-month old son in September, killing the boy.
Chambers, who has lived in his home for 14 months, said the apparent kidnapping is especially troubling because it comes on the heels of that case.
“I gotta move,” Chambers said.
Why bother…i can read 50 other crime stories and not 1 time do they list any details because of race…how do i know? i know a reporter. P.C. run amok.
in this case, race was mentioned to describe a suspect. Why, are you really surprised that pedophiles are mostly white?
I certainly hope the police look at the multi-level apartments surrounding this house.
Seems to me this guy knew too much about the house and which window to breach.
that makes sense. he targeted the kid someway.
how can a man headbutt a 3 month old?!