Man allegedly tries to lure two Barwon Heads Primary students into car
Families at Barwon Heads Primary School have been warned to be vigilant after the second alleged attempted child luring incident in just over 12 months.
A Barwon Heads primary school has issued an alert after a man allegedly attempted to lure two students into a car last week.
It is understood a man approached two boys in Barwon Heads on Friday while they were walking to school.
Police said the man stopped his white vehicle near a school on Golf Links Drive about 8.45am and spoke to one of the boys before leaving the scene.
Victoria Police senior constable Emma Faliszewski said detectives were “investigating the circumstances to determine if any offences occurred”.
Barwon Heads Primary School principal Robin Bennetts alerted families of the alleged incident on Monday, requesting parents and teachers reiterate student safety in the wake of the luring attempt.
“Late last week, we had an incident involving an adult trying to lure two of our students into a car on their way to school,” the message read.
“The students did exactly the right thing, ignored the person and moved away as quickly as possible.”
Mr Bennetts added while it was a “rare” incident in the community and “not a cause for alarm”, it was an important reminder to maintain awareness.
“This is particularly the case, given this Friday is Halloween with many students moving around our community,” he said.
“We are also approaching a warm long weekend which brings plenty of unknown visitors to our community.
“I am going to ask our teachers to reiterate with students how to keep themselves safe in the community by travelling in numbers, not engaging with unknown adults and reporting any behaviours of concern.”
The school also advised parents and carers to discuss community safety at home.
It comes off the back of a similar incident in Barwon Heads this time last year, when three men allegedly attempted to lure two young girls into their car.
The men allegedly told the girls, one of which attended Barwon Heads Primary School, that they had lollipops in the car, as well as a child the same age.
Mr Bennetts issued an almost identical warning at the time, saying it was “a timely reminder to be vigilant about this sort of behaviour”.
“This week, teachers are going to do some refresher education with students about how to manage these situations,” he added.
“It would be great if these messages can be repeated at home so that we can help keep all of our students safe.”
The education department has been contacted for comment.
Anyone who witnessed the incident, or has CCTV/dashcam footage or information, is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
More to come.
Originally published as Man allegedly tries to lure two Barwon Heads Primary students into car
