DA: Girl, 8, thwarts man who tried to kidnap her

from Boston Crime Universal Hub by adamg
A Chelsea man is behind bars today, charged with trying to kidnap the girl as she got on the bus at St. Rose Elementary School on Feb. 2.

Leonel Zelaya, also known as Gerado Zelaya, 43, of Charlestown, allegedly tried to pull the girl away as she was boarding a bus for home around 2:45 p.m, claiming he was her brother, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's office. Instead, the girl began screaming: "No, no! No, I don’t know him!" Zelaya fled and a teacher called police, who found him at Broadway and Cary Street, the DA's office says.

Zelaya pleaded innocent at his arraignment in Chelsea District Court on charges of attempted kidnapping and assault and battery. Bail was set at $10,000, but even if he could raise that, he'd remain in jail because the judge revoked his bail on an earlier, unrelated charge, the DA's office says. DA Dan Conley said in a statement:

This little girl did exactly the right thing. She resisted, she spoke up, and she stayed with the adult she knew. For all our concern about internet predators in this modern age, what we used to call 'stranger danger' is still a very real concern for anyone who has children.