There have been no child abductions nor attempted abductions in Galloway Township, police said Monday in response to social media posts that have garnered a lot of attention and concern from parents.
"There have been two recently reported incidents involving suspicious vehicles," Lt. Christopher McGinty wrote in a news release. "Neither was reported as a child abduction or attempted child abduction/luring incident."
Over the weekend, a woman told police that her two girls were walking in the neighborhood when they passed a vehicle they had never seen before with a man standing outside it, according to the report.
The man asked the girls, "How are you doing?" as they walked by.
A short time later, he drove away.
He is described as a very tan Caucasian or Hispanic man who is bald with a long white beard. He is believed to be in his 40s or older.
The SUV is dark blue, possibly a Jeep or Hyundai.
One Facebook post by a Pomona woman seems to be of that incident. In it, she claims her daughter and niece were almost abducted from their neighborhood.
The woman claimed police told her there were other abductions recently. But that is untrue, Galloway police said.
The status had been shared more than 2,400 times.
Police did say there was an incident of a similarly suspicious man reported nine days earlier.
The small child was on the front lawn of her home when a vehicle went by, stopped and backed up.
The male driver was seen on a cell phone, "possibly describing the child," the report stated.
The driver saw the child's mother and drove away.
That vehicle is described as a blue Toyota Sienna minivan. The driver is described as a white man in his 40s with dark hair and light-colored facial hair in a goatee.
There has been no connection between the two incidents established at this time, McGinty said, noting the descriptions of the men in the two incidents is different.
Police stressed that in these two reported incidents, there was no attempt made to lure or to abduct a child.
The Galloway Township Police Department is investigating and will continue to do so.
Parents are encouraged to be vigilant with their children and to report any and all suspicious activity.
Police again stressed there have been no abductions reported and no missing children.
