Good Samaritans stop Australian DJ from snatching toddler, police say

Roscoe Holyoake. Photo / San Francisco County Jail

Good Samaritans stopped the attempted kidnapping of a 2-year-old boy by an Australian DJ from a busy San Francisco street, police said today.

Police arrested Roscoe Bradley Holyoake, 34, of Perth, Australia, on Friday.

Australia media reports Holyoake is a popular DJ known as DJ Roski.

The toddler was holding his mother's hand while they walked in the Castro neighbourhood when Holyoake snatched the boy, San Francisco police say.

Holyoake ran for about half a block with the mother and several bystanders in pursuit before the bystanders grabbed and held him until police arrived.

Holyoake appeared briefly in court and was ordered to return on Friday to enter a plea.

His lawyer Steve Olmo told media outside court that Holyoake doesn't have a criminal record and was in San Francisco on business.

Holyoake remained in San Francisco County Jail on US$500,000 bail.

-AP