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Girl, 9, who bit would-be kidnapper at Titusville park helps police create composite sketch

TITUSVILLE, Fla. — A 9-year-old girl who bit a man who tried to kidnap her Saturday afternoon from a park is helping investigators create a composite sketch of the would-be kidnapper, the Titusville Police Department said.

The girl told Eyewitness News that she went to put a blanket back in her parents’ car at W.W. James Park when a man driving a car pulled into an adjacent parking spot.

The stranger got out and asked the girl if she wanted a ride.

Photos: Attempted kidnapping at Titusville Park

“He said, ‘Come on. I'll buy you candy, and I'll buy you toys and treats from the store,’” she said. “I said, ‘No’ and he grabbed my wrist and said, ‘Come on.’”

When he grabbed her wrist, she bit him, she said.

“When I was little, my dad told me if anyone tried to hurt me or kidnap me, just try to hurt them back or really bite them, because your teeth are one of the most powerful muscles,” the girl said. “If you listen to your parents, you'll be more safe and you can fight back.”

She was able to break free and run to her mother to report what happened.

The girl’s mother told Channel 9 that she’s grateful that her daughter managed to scare off the man.

“I just feel thankful that she was able to defend herself and that she was able to stop this from being the worst day of my life as a parent,” the girl’s mother said.

Police spent hours searching for any surveillance cameras that might have recorded the getaway vehicle, which the girl described as a smaller convertible with white stripe on its side.

She described the attempted kidnapper as a white man in his 50s or 60s with hazel eyes, a shaved spot on his head with gray hair on the sides and a crooked finger.

Investigators haven’t said when the composite sketch will be completed.