Man in cargo van has repeatedly targeted children in Berkeley

A man in Berkeley has tried to lure children into his van repeatedly during the last few weeks.

Police say at least five times since mid-September, a man in a van has pulled up alongside middle-school-age children and waved or called them toward his van. Each time, the children have run away instead, police said.

The latest incident occurred about 6 p.m. Sunday, when police say a man standing next to a black, full-sized cargo van yelled at three girls passing by to get in. They continued on, and the man followed them until they ran off, police said.

During their investigation, police learned that another girl in the area reported a similar occurrence nearby about 15 minutes earlier. In each case, the man and his vehicle were similar to reports from the month before.

Authorities say on Sept. 18, a man pulled up alongside two girls about 8:20 a.m. off Telegraph Avenue near Stuart Street, rolled down his window and told them to get in. The girls said no, and he told them a second time to get in the van. Instead, the girls went to the school office and reported what happened, officials said.

That investigation revealed that after that incident, not far away, the man had approached another girl, but he sped off when the girls’ father approached. Finally, a third incident that day involved a little boy with long hair. The man again told the child to get in the van, and may have thought the child was a girl because of his hair, police said.

Police have been canvassing local businesses to see if they can find security video of the vehicle and its driver. Detectives said the children in each case did the right thing by leaving the area and notifying authorities.

Berkeley’s police’s special victims unit can be reached at (510) 981-5715.

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