BURLINGTON, Mass. — The surveillance video shows the moment a man grabs a woman and attempts to kidnap her and pulls her down the street before she struggles to break free.
For people who work nearby, this incident was chilling.
“It’s terrifying and it’s good that there’s good people out there and the woman that stopped and pulled over probably saved this woman’s life,” said Dawn Seivers, who works at Office Works.
The attempted kidnapping happened Sunday around 8:20 p.m. off the Middlesex Turnpike in Burlington. The dramatic incident was captured on Office Works’ security camera. It shows the man following the woman down the sidewalk. She runs across Middlesex Turnpike while the man chases her, and a struggle ensues in the middle of the road.
The man then drags the woman onto a side street as she fights to get away.
A woman driving on her way home from work saw it all unfolding and immediately called 911.
(Dispatcher) Hello?
(Caller) I just saw some guy just try to abduct some girl. I’m on the side of the road, she’s got no shirt on.
(Dispatcher) Where are you?
In the 911 call, you can hear the driver trying to console the sobbing woman.
(Caller) You’re okay, they’re coming. You’re okay. Do you know him?
(Victim) No.
(Caller) You don’t know him? Okay.
Police believe when the driver slammed on her brakes, that was just enough to scare the man. He took off running and cut through the Burlington DPW parking lot.
Police released images of the suspect. He’s believed to be a white man in his late teens or early 20s, last seen wearing a black hat and hoodie, brown khaki pants, and black and white shoes.
Officers immediately started searching for the suspect, using police dogs, drones and even infrared. Police say so far no one has been arrested, and that is the immediate concern right now.
A nearby surveillance camera captured the encounter described by investigators.
“This is a wake-up call for all of us we need the public to be vigilant, everybody thinks this type of thing happens in Burlington and usually it doesn’t but we all need to be mindful that this, in fact, can happen anywhere,” said Burlington Police Chief Thomas Browne.
You can hear the 911 call to police from the Good Samaritan who pulled over to help the woman here:
Police are emphasizing the importance of staying aware of your surroundings at all times.
“Stay off the phone while you’re walking,” said Chief Browne. “I don’t know if the victim was necessarily on there, but we certainly see that enough. People aren’t paying attention, they’re looking at their phones instead of paying attention to their surroundings. We just need to be vigilant.”
Burlington Police say if you can help identify the man please give them a call at 781-272-1212.
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