Police: Maine museum worker foils attempted abduction

AUGUSTA, ME -- A museum employee sprang into action when she saw what she says was a man about to abduct a young child, according to ABC affiliate WMTW.

Sharon Wise says she's not a hero. Her instincts kicked in when she yelled at James Cavallaro, 58, running from the Maine State Museum Tuesday.

"The guy came almost running over here and grabbed her coat and is trying to yank it up over her head," said Wise.

Wise said shortly after noon, she spotted a man, later identified as Cavallaro, lurking in the lobby of the museum where she has worked for years.

Wise said the 2-year-old girl's grandmother was hanging their coats when Cavallaro tried to snatch her.

"He grabbed hold of her wrist and he starts pulling her, and at that point, instinctively, I bent over and hovered over the child, and I kept saying in a low, very low voice, 'Leave her alone. Let go of her, let her go. Don't you touch her,' and he wouldn't. He kept pulling her, and he pulled her a couple of steps," said Wise.

Wise stepped between the man and the child and prevented an alleged abduction.

"And (I) looked him right in the eye and I was really close to him and I said, 'Let go of her now,' and he waited for a minute, looked me right in

the eye and he dropped her hand and left," Wise said.

Within minutes, Capitol police arrested Cavalla in the parking lot and charged him with assault.

Wise says employees were trained how to deal with this kind of a situation. She used a firm voice with the suspect, then a stern voice.

Police said this was a random act. They have surveillance tapes from the museum, but they wouldn't release them saying those tapes are part of the investigation.