FARMINGTON — Police are looking for a man they believe was involved in three attempted kidnappings Friday in Davis County.
The Davis County Sheriff's Office received a call around 1 p.m. about a man who entered a backyard of a Fruit Heights home where two young boys were playing and asked them to "come with him and play."
The boys, between the ages of 4 and 6, immediately went inside the home and told their mother, who called police, said Davis County Sheriff's Sgt. Susan Poulsen.
The boys described the man as being older, with a beard and a tattoo on his face, Poulsen said. A search of the area using K-9 units failed to locate the man, she said.
Later, about 2:40 p.m., the sheriff's office received another report of an attempted abduction, this time Kaysville.
A 13-year-old boy was walking home from school in the area of Mutton Hollow and Boynton roads when a van pulled up to him and a man inside told the boy to "come here," Poulsen said.
"(The boy) took off running," she said, "and the van followed him for about three blocks."
The boy described the vehicle as a large, white van — the type that can carry 14 to 16 passengers, Poulsen said. It had no markings, other than some rust along the bottom, the boy told police.
The boy also got a good look at the driver, Poulsen said. He described the man as being in his 40s or 50s, with long red hair, a bushy red beard and freckles. Also, the man was wearing a white or gray T-shirt, police said.
The boy didn't get a license plate number, "but he gave us a pretty good description (of the driver)," Poulsen said. "We're considering him a very reliable witness."
Later in the afternoon, the sheriff's office got a call from Clearfield police regarding a complaint that department had received between 11 a.m. and noon about a man in a silver van taking pictures of children during recess at Hill Field Elementary School, 389 S. 1000 East.
"We're not sure if (the incidents) are related, but they're just close enough that it has us very concerned," Poulsen said.
Interviews with neighbors in the areas of the attempted abductions resulted in other reports that a man fitting a similar description had been seen driving around the neighborhoods in a van.
The Davis County Sheriff's Office is asking county residents to be on the lookout for a white or silver van and anyone matching the man's description. Anyone with information is encouraged to call 801-451-4150.
E-mail: jpage@desnews.com