Alpine officials advising area students following reports of suspicious activities

Suspicious activities spur Alpine District to pass out letter

Students in Alpine School District are walking warily this week after suspicious activities in the neighborhood prompted administrators to pass out letters warning of stranger danger.

Three times in the past three weeks, students have been stopped by strangers in cars who talked as if they wanted the child to get in, said American Fork police Sgt. Gregg Ludlow.

The children, one each at Forbes and Cedar Ridge elementary schools and one at American Fork Junior High, are all safe.

Police said the children dealt with the situation well.

"They broke off contact, they got away immediately and they told an adult," Ludlow said. "That's all we can ask."

Reports like that aren't uncommon, Ludlow said, especially as the weather gets colder. But neither the police department nor the school district is treating the incident lightly.

"We take it very seriously when we hear a student has been approached in a suspicious way," said Rhonda Bromley, Alpine School District spokeswoman. "Whether they were in real danger of being abducted or not, the fact that the student was scared and ran away is serious to us."

In Salt Lake City, police have not received any legitimate reports of abduction attempts from children walking to or from school this year, said Salt Lake police Sgt. Robin Snyder.

But all children should follow several general safety tips, she said.

"Always walk in groups. And always tell your parents which route you're taking home," Snyder said. "Most importantly, children should have a good code word that only they, their parents and people authorized to pick them up know."

It's important not to talk to strangers, Snyder said. But if a person tries to talk to a child or persuade them to get into a car, the child should not get into the vehicle unless the person knows the predetermined code word.

"Don't get into vehicles with people you don't know," concurred Salt Lake County Sheriff's Lt. Paul Jaroscak.

Some predators may ask children to help them find their lost puppy or tell them that their mother sent them to pick them up or that they need to get into the car because their mother has been in an accident, Snyder said.

If a stranger makes a child feel uncomfortable, the child should run to the closest home and make a lot of noise, Jaroscak said.

"Just pound on the door and scream for help," he said.

If the stranger is there for a legitimate reason, that person will probably stay to explain what is happening. But if it's a predator, they will likely run off at that point, Jaroscak said.

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E-mail: estuart@desnews.com, preavy@desnews.com

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