Police have identified and questioned an individual with respect to the Dec. 9 incident in which a man offered candy to a girl as she left Ponoka Elementary School and attempted to get her to come with him into his car.
No charges were laid as there was insufficient evidence against the man, but police encourage parents to have regular discussion with their children about personal safety.
Ponoka RCMP said they are thankful to the public and the press for their assistance in the matter.
Recognizing and dealing with dangerous situations
The National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) states that one way to identify “Stranger Danger” is if an adult asks children to disobey their parents or do something without their permission; or if an adult asks a child for help or makes them feel uncomfortable, the council states a child should seek the help of a trusted adult immediately.
On the NCPC website under Violent Crimes and Personal Safety, suggestions in handling dangerous situations is to teach children “No, Go, Yell, Tell.”
“If in a dangerous situations, kids should say no, run away, yell as loud as they can, and tell a trusted adult what happened right away. Make sure that your children know that it is okay to say no to an adult in a dangerous situation and to yell to keep themselves safe, even if they are indoors,” states the website.