Child-luring attempt rumors in Smith false
The chief of the Smith Township police department wants to dispel rumors circulating on social media that an attempt was made to lure a child.
Chief Bernie LaRue said it apparently started earlier this month when his department got a call about an incident at the Atlasburg Professional Building on Smith Township State Road (Route 18).
A female patient reportedly saw two men in a white van and overheard one of them saying, “She’s too old.”
She reported the incident at the doctor’s office, and a secretary posted about the incident on Facebook.
“It went viral,” LaRue said. “The van never stopped, and there was no attempt to take (a girl who was in the area).”
The department posted on its Facebook page about the incident, indicating they did not believe that it was any type of abduction attempt. They did recommend that suspicious activity be reported to police.
Police then received a report of a white van in the Francis Mine area. Police saw the van and did not observe anything suspicious about the vehicle or the occupants.
LaRue said police have not received any reports of attempts at child luring, in spite of the claims being made by dozens of people posting on a Burgettstown area Facebook page.
“We’ve even got reports of seeing a white van in West Virginia,” LaRue said. “The social media reports circulating involving a white van trying to lure individuals are unfounded. My concern is that everyone seems to be out there looking for white vans.”