SDPD arrests suspect in attempted kidnapping at Mission Valley Mall – NBC 7 San Diego

A man suspected of attempting to kidnap a young girl at Mission Valley Mall this week was arrested by San Diego police Thursday afternoon following a highway stop.

Rene Lujan, 42, was tracked down by police on State Route 94 between Interstates 15 and 805 on Thursday, police said, after the vehicle he was driving was located using digital license plate readers. SDPD Lt. Daniel Meyer said at a 5:30 p.m. news conference that Lujan was arrested on attempted kidnapping charges.

NBC 7’s Omari Fleming reports from Mission Valley, where police say the suspect attempted to kidnap the child while the mother was nearby.

On Tuesday, a 6-year-old girl was pushing a stroller with her 8-month-old brother in it and walking behind her mother outside Buffalo Wild Wings when a man approached her from behind, grabbed her by the shoulders, lifted her up and walked 4 to 5 feet, according to San Diego police. Then, on Thursday afternoon, a second attempted kidnapping was reported at the mall.

At a press conference on Thursday around 3:15 p.m. to inform the public about the first case, SDPD Lt. Daniel Meyer made the shocking revelation about the latest attempt.

Lujan was only charged with Tuesday’s attempt, officials said.

On Tuesday, police said, the girl screamed, prompting her mother to turn around and confront the suspect, who said he thought the girl was someone else before walking away and driving away, police said. The mother and her daughter then went to the security desk at the nearby Target store, where the mother called 911, SDPD Lt. Bryan Brecht said.

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In the second incident, which occurred around 2 p.m., a girl about 5 years old was picked up by the suspect, who attempted to carry the child away and place her in a vehicle, Meyer said, adding that he does not yet know the location of the second attempt at the mall. The car driven in Thursday’s incident was only reported as black, which Meyer said matches the car the suspect used to flee the mall on Tuesday: a black 2013 Chevy Volt with license plate 7VBS762, which is the vehicle that was stopped on SR-94.

“Just before I came to this press conference, I was made aware of another incident,” Meyer said, later adding that “the suspect in this similar incident is likely the same suspect as in the first case.”

Police described the suspect as a man in his 30s to 40s, approximately 5’10” tall and 150 pounds, with shoulder-length, slicked-back black hair. According to camera footage and witness statements obtained by SDPD, he was wearing a mint green shirt and gray pants. The lieutenant said the second incident is still under investigation, but the suspect’s description is the same, except he was wearing an orange and white shirt and tan shorts on Thursday.

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Meyer said the children were obviously traumatized.

“As a district, we provide a range of resources to victims of crime,” Meyer said.

Court records also show that Lujan was arrested and charged with unknown crimes in at least two other cases in 2000 and 2009.