Police have released additional details that shed light on a 37-year-old man’s recent attempt to lure and kidnap a child walking to school along Semoran Boulevard on Monday morning.
According to an arrest affidavit from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, at around 8:01 a.m. on Monday, April 11, a male child on his way to school reported that a white vehicle pulled up and the driver, 37-year-old Vinh Nguyen, honked the horn at him and waved.
The victim says Nguyen exited the vehicle and asked him if he wanted a ride to school, to which he replied “No, thank you.”
Nguyen then put his arm around the shoulders of the victim and asked him where his school was, before he pinched the victim’s cheeks and told him “how cute he was,” according to the affidavit.
Nguyen offered to take the victim to school again and the victim again refused before Nguyen left in a white vehicle, later identified as a Toyota RAV4.
During their investigation to identify Nguyen, detectives received information that he had offered a 13-year-old child a ride last year. The tip led police to an address where they found Nguyen.
Nguyen was questioned by detectives and before being told why, asked whether they were going to question about an incident with the male child victim.
Nguyen stated that he had seen the victim about five or six times prior to the incident while he was walking to school. Nguyen said the victim reminded him of his younger brother, who passed away. He stated he stopped and offered the victim a ride to school and also admitted to telling him he was cute and placing his hands on the child’s face.
Nguyen stated he was “attracted to both males and females, but not children,” according to the report.
After confirming that he was the man in the video, Nguyen stated several times that he did not know what he did was wrong. When asked what he would have done with the child had he accepted his offer for a ride, Nguyen said he would have put the child in the car and drove him to school.
Nguyen is being charged with false imprisonment, luring or enticing a child under the age of 12, and battery.