An alleged abduction attempt at a Chilliwack elementary school earlier this week has already led to charges.
Joel McGillis has been charged with kidnapping a person under 16 years of age in connection to the Wednesday morning incident at Chilliwack Central Elementary School.
Police are now seeking additional witnesses, specifically those who saw an individual wearing a “purple bunny-like mask” around the school that morning.
The RCMP says police were notified shortly after 9 am about the attempted abduction of a seven-year-old girl.
According to police, McGillis is accused of trying to “remove the child from school property” before a concerned bystander intervened and brought the girl back to school.
Fortunately, the child was uninjured, and McGillis was located nearby a short time later and arrested by the RCMP.
Police say McGillis and the child “are not known to one another” and this is believed to have been an isolated incident.
“Chilliwack RCMP is taking this incident extremely seriously. The safety of children in our community is a key priority, and we recognize how concerning this type of event is for families,” said Supt. Darren Pankratz.
“We are working closely with the school district as this investigation continues, and we thank the members of the public who assisted in ensuring the child’s safety and helping police quickly locate and arrest the suspect.”
The RCMP is looking for witnesses who were in the area between the school and the 46000 block of Margaret Avenue between 8:30 am and 9:15 am Wednesday, particularly those who spotted someone wearing the unique bunny mask.
Anyone with information can contact the Chilliwack RCMP at 604-792-4611.
