Published: May 02, 2008 12:37 am            

LOCKPORT: Suspect arrested in alleged abduction attempt

Lockport police arrested a Newfane man Thursday in connection with an alleged abduction attempt on Price Street.

Daniel G. Bowser, 24, 2991 Lockport Road, Newfane, was charged with attempted unlawful imprisonment.

A 10-year-old girl told police she was walking to school on Price Street about 8:15 a.m. Thursday when a green Chevrolet Malibu passed by her, allegedly driven by Bowser.

The girl said the car turned around on Waterman Street and came back to pass her again.

Bowser allegedly rolled down the passenger side window and asked the girl to get in the car, according to Lockport Police Detective Capt. Rick Podgers.

“He tried to get the child into the car, where she would have been restrained and unable to leave under her own will,” Podgers said.

The girl refused to get in the car, and Bowser drove off, Podgers said.

In initial reports, the girl said she saw another child in the back seat of the car, but that information was “unfounded,” according to a letter sent home to parents by Lockport City School District Superintendent Terry Ann Carbone.

Police in North Tonawanda will likely review the circumstances of Bowser’s arrest to decide whether any connection exists between the suspect and descriptions of the person or persons behind an abduction there in March. Podgers said he did not know if the case had any relation to that incident, in which a 12-year-old girl was reportedly abducted at knifepoint on her way to the bus stop and assaulted in an abandoned house before escaping from an upper floor window.

“We’re going to look at it but I don’t think it’s related to ours,” North Tonawanda Police Capt. William Hall said.

The alleged incident in Lockport was witnessed by a crossing guard, Peggy Crego, who took note of the description of the car, Podgers said.

Throughout the morning, city police were on the lookout for cars matching that description. Carbone’s letter said officers kept up a heightened presence at city schools during student arrivals and dismissals.

Around noon, Crego was driving and reportedly saw Bowser’s car on West Avenue. She followed it, calling police.

As Bowser’s car passed the Lockport Police Department, officers executed a traffic stop, and Bowser was brought in for questioning, Podgers said. He was arrested around 1 p.m.

Mayor Michael Tucker praised Crego for her efforts, saying she will most likely be honored by the city.

“Obviously the crossing guard was being very observant,” he said. “We owe her a debt of gratitude.”

Thursday’s incident is very similar to a reported abduction attempt from April 21 on West Avenue in Lockport. In that case, a 13-year-old girl told police a man drove by her, then turned around and parked nearby.

The girl said the man got out of his car, casing her to become afraid. She said she ran away, and the man drove away after searching for her in the area.

Podgers said police are preparing a photo array to determine if Bowser had any connection to the April 21 incident.

“We are working to build a photo lineup now which will be shown to the victim from West Avenue,” he said, adding the suspect descriptions in the cases are “very similar.”

Contact reporter April Amadon at 439-9222, ext. 6251.

        

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