A man being hunted as a potential child abductor may be preparing for another attempt to snatch a child, say Auckland police.
A man and a car fitting the police profile of the suspect - already thought to be behind three failed child-abduction attempts - was seen last week outside a Parakai kindergarten, northwest of Auckland.
The man, described as a dark-haired Pakeha in his 30s, was sitting in his red car outside the kindergarten close to where there have been three other recent attempts to snatch children.
Detective Sergeant Scott Beard said no one took the car's registration number.
He has appealed to anyone seeing a suspicious person loitering around a school or kindergarten to take the vehicle's plate number and call police immediately.
One attempt was thwarted when the six-year-old victim kicked and screamed as the man tried to drag him into his car.
Police said the attack was in daylight, with scores of adults and children only metres away at a school calf day.
The same man is thought to have tried to abduct a 10-year-old boy the day before. A few days later, a man with a similar description, in a red car, approached a nine-year-old girl.
Detective Sergeant Beard said it was worrying that last week's sighting might have been the same man and he still appeared to be waiting for a chance to snatch a child.
"Everything fits. The description fits, the vehicle description fits. If it is the same guy it is a real concern."
- NZPA
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