A 16-year-old student walking to McArthur High School on Tuesday morning fought off a man who tried to force her into his car, whacking him with her book bag, police said.
The teen, not identified by police, was not physically harmed during the attack and the suspect drove away, Hollywood Police spokesman Capt. Tony Rode said.
"In this particular case, [the] victim did exactly what we would want her to do: kick, bite, scream and certainly resist with violence," Rode said. "History shows us that once these offenders get victims in cars, the chance of survival diminishes."
Police are searching for a Hispanic man in his 30s with a mustache. He was wearing a white t-shirt and driving a newer model gray four-door Mitsubishi Galant. The teen told police a small Mexican flag was hanging from the rearview mirror.
The teen was walking west on the 6300 block of Buchanan Street when the Mitsubishi pulled up about 6:55 a.m. The man got out of the car, grabbed the student by the arm and tried to "stuff" her into the vehicle, police said.
She hit him in the face with her book bag and then kicked the attacker in the groin, Rode said. When the man let go, she ran.
Once she was safe, the teen called police on a cell phone.
About 20 minutes before the attack, a man called police about a suspicious person in a gray car parked in front of a house in the 300 block of north 64th Avenue, Rode said. When police investigated after the attempted abduction, they found a cold beer can and some "fresh regurgitation" where the man in the gray car had lingered.
Rode said it may have been the same man who tried to abduct the 16-year-old girl.
Anyone who has seen the car or the man is asked to call Hollywood police at 954-967-4357.
Andrew Ryan can be reached at aryan@sun-sentinel.com or 954-385-7922.
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