Charges May Not Be Filed in Suspected Abduction

Police have located two men in what they think was a thwarted abduction of three children in Laurel last week, but it is possible that neither man will be charged, officials said at a news conference Tuesday.

Investigators questioned one of the men, who asked three children playing in an apartment complex in the 300 block of Thomas Drive to come toward his truck, and he acknowledged speaking with the kids. But because one of the children's parents came outside and scared the men away, it is possible that no crime was committed, authorities said.

"It's going to be entirely up to the state's attorney's office" whether to file charges, said Richard P. McLaughlin, deputy chief of the Laurel police. "At this point, by statute, by the law, no crime has actually occurred."

Prince George's County State's Attorney Glenn F. Ivey said it would be premature to speculate on whether either man would be charged because the investigation is ongoing. He also declined to discuss whether charges were possible, given the circumstances of the case.

"I think we want them to finish the investigation, and then we'll make decisions about charges," he said.

The man to whom police talked, a 20-year-old from Laurel, was driving the truck, which belonged to his father, when he and another man beckoned the children to approach, police said.

McLaughlin said investigators believe the Sept. 30 incident was a genuine abduction attempt, noting that the driver allegedly told the children, "Come here, we're not going to do anything to you." He said the driver declined to answer investigators' questions about his intent.

"This could have been very bad," McLaughlin said.

Investigators have identified the other man as a 22-year-old from Laurel but have yet to find and speak with him, McLaughlin said.

The driver of the truck was found within 48 hours of the incident, thanks in large part to police releasing a detailed description of the vehicle, officials said. That release prompted hundreds of phone calls from residents, and eventually led investigators to find the blue Mazda pickup truck and identify the two men.

The three children involved in the incident -- a girl, 7, and two boys, 8 and 9 -- were unharmed, police said. As the children approached the truck, the mother of the 8-year-old boy came outside and yelled for the children to stay away from it. Then, as all three children fled toward home, police said, the girl's mother came outside and the pickup sped away.