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Date Published: 07/02/2023

Attempted kidnap of Orihuela schoolgirl was a misunderstanding, say Spanish police

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Reports two men had tried to lure an 8-year-old into a van in the Vega Baja have now been dismissed as a mistake

Attempted kidnap of Orihuela schoolgirl was a misunderstanding, say Spanish police

An investigation into the alleged kidnapping of an Orihuela schoolgirl, 8, has been dropped and the National Police has issued a statement claiming "it was all due to a neighborhood misunderstanding", although no further details have been disclosed.

A document was made public by the National Police's Family and Women's Care Unit (UFAM) through social networks last week, stating that two men, believed to be in their 50s, had tried to coerce a young girl into a white van on the Camino Viejo de Bigastro in Orihuela at around 12.30pm on Sunday January 29.

The circular, which the police have confirmed was "real" but "internal" warned that the men had claimed to know the young girl's parents and told her to get into the vehicle.

"The frightened girl screamed and managed to run home where she told her mother what had happened," it added.

The mother immediately called 091, but when police arrived, there was no sign of the alleged suspects or any witnesses.

At first, Alicante Provincial Police said they were "investigating" the facts and so could not confirm or deny anything.

However, in a statement on Friday February 4, they confirmed that while the document released was real and was an internal note they denied that there was an attempted kidnapping.

"Reports of an attempted kidnapping of an eight-year-old girl in Orihuela on January 29 2023 was due to a neighborhood misunderstanding ruling out the reason that gave rise to the investigation," reads the statement.

Other news: Spanish private health group opens Alicante hospitals to British patients on waiting lists in the UK

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