Police are appealing for information after a reported child approach in Sydney’s Northern Beaches last week, NSW Police say.
Shortly after 8.00am on Thursday, 28 April 2016, a ten-year-old boy was walking to school along Gulliver Street, Brookvale when he was approached by a man in a white van offering him a lift. The boy declined and the driver of the van drove away.
The boy continued to school and reported the incident later that night to his mother.
The mother reported the incident to police the following day.
Investigators from Northern Beaches Local Area Command have commenced inquiries into the matter.
The man has been described to police as aged in his 20’s, having short black hair and a short black beard.
The van is described as white, with green writing on the driver’s side door of the vehicle and four doors (two sliding).
Police are urging anyone with information in relation to this incident to contact Dee Why Police Station on (02) 9971 3399 or call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or use the Crime Stoppers online reporting page: https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au/
Information you provide will be treated in the strictest of confidence. We remind people they should not report crime information via our Facebook and Twitter pages.
Meanwhile, the incident has again prompted police to encourage parents to discuss the ‘Safe People, Safe Places’ messages with their children, including:
* Avoid walking on your own and instead walk with other family members, friends or an adult they know when going to and from school;
* Walk near busier roads and streets, or use paths where there are lots of other people;
* Make sure your parents or another adult you know knows where you are at all times;
* Always walk straight home or to the place you are walking to;
* Know where safe places are – a shop, service station, police station, library or school. If you are ever frightened, you should go to one of these places and ask them to call the police;
* Learn about safe adults you can look for and talk to if you need help – police officers, teachers at school, adults you know and trust;
* Don’t talk to people you don’t know and never get into a car with someone you don’t know. If a car stops on the side of the road and you don’t know the person inside, do not stop; and
* If you are scared and can use a phone, call 000 and tell them you are scared.
