Nine-year-old Dakota Barker says she kept it bottled up for a week before she told anyone. Now she's sharing her story in hopes of protecting other children.
"I thought he might have would have tooken (sic) me away," Dakota said.
The Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office says on January 24, the nine-year-old girl approached near the restroom in the River City RV Park, located off of FM 762.
"This guy just comes up and says, 'Hey you want to come back to my house?' and he said that three times, and I said, 'Leave me alone.' And then I was walking off and he grabbed my arm," Dakota said.
Dakota yanked her arm back and ran home. She told deputies she didn't report the incident to her mother right away because she "did not want to scare her." She finally told her parents on January 31, and they reported the incident to authorities.
"This is like a parent's worst nightmare," her father, Clark Barker, said.
Dakota did not suffer any physical injuries. Her father has talked to his children about stranger danger once again and encourages other parents to do the same, as he holds tight to his little girl.
"Couldn't imagine, don't even want to imagine, what could have happened. I'm just thankful that she got away and she's safe," he said.
What's even more scary is that the attempted abduction happened right across the street from Williams Elementary School.
The suspect is described as at white male between 5-feet, 9-inches and 6-feet tall with a thin build. He is estimated to be around 20 years old and was wearing a dark blue work shirt with no writing on it, and khaki pants. She said he did not have any facial hair and his hair was short, but not shaved. He also had a tattoo of a skull in black on his right forearm.
The victim said she had never seen him before and has not seen him since.
Anyone with information about the suspect is encouraged to call Fort Bend County Crime Stoppers at 281-342-TIPS. Information which leads to the apprehension and filing of charges on the suspect involved could earn a reward of up to $5,000. All calls to Crime Stoppers are anonymous.
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