Stranger Danger Alert In Southgate

SOUTHGATE (WWJ) - Southgate police are warning parents of two incidents in which a stranger offered kids candy, just days apart.

Officials say a man in a white van approached a group of boys last Thursday at Kennebec and Ludington and asked them if they wanted candy. When the boys ignored him, he drove off.

A similar incident took place Saturday in the area of Pearl and Wesley where a young boy was walking alone.  A man, described as in his 50's, with a reddish beard, in an older white van came up to him and offered candy and video games. The boy took off running and the van sped away.

Police have upped their presence in both areas.

WWJ spoke with Thomas Coombs, with the Southgate Police Department, who said investigators believe they are looking for a single suspect.

"That would make you believe that the two are related, definitely, with the vehicle description being similar and then the offer of candy.  That would definitely make you believe they potentially are related," Coombs said.

Coombs said parents should always make sure their kids are not walking home alone, and should keep track of them.

"Make sure that if the child is coming from a friend's home, that they call to say I'm on my way from my friend's so that the parent knows at what time the child left the friend's home and is now en route to their end location," he said.

Anyone with information about either of these incidents is asked to contact Southgate Police.