EPPD: ‘Facebook Posts About Attempted Kidnappings In El Paso Not Credible’

There have been a lot of Facebook reports out lately about people, specifically women and children, being targeted by kidnappers. Posts by people who say that they saw a woman with a child running into a store to get away from someone trying to take the child, or a woman who claims that she has been boxed in by vehicles at a red light have a lot of people frightened, but are those claims real? Is there a gang of kidnappers trying to take women and children and sell them to human traffickers?

The El Paso Police Department says they have no confirmed reports of this type of activity. They say there has only been one police report made about such an incident, but no suspect was found. EPPD says that they don't believe that there is a danger to the public, but if something like this happens to you, you need to call them and put in a police report, not just post it online. When threats against a school get shared online, it only serves to panic people, and police say the same is true of this type of social media activity.

A woman named Ashley Estrada posted a video message on Facebook where she talked for almost ten minutes about almost being kidnapped. She has since deleted the post. According to Estrada, she went to the Pebble Hills Regional Command Center to file a police report, but did not have enough information about the incident.

She did release a statement to our news partners at KVIA:

“Good Morning, I am unable to give my statement at this time I do not feel comfortable with everything that has happened in the last 24hrs. My story has changed repeatedly, I feel I did my part already making it known and spreading awareness. Everyone wants to point fingers. The Police have done what they can with very little details. I do not want to be a walking target or have my family and Job linked to this. I have learned a very valuable lesson in all this. Thank you for your time.”

Police tell us this all the time:
1. Be aware of your surroundings at all times.
2. Park as close as you can to the entrance to your destination.
3. If you feel uneasy about walking to your car by yourself, ask for security to escort you to your car.
4. Try not to walk to or sit in your car while looking at your phone.
5. It's a distraction that could make your vulnerable.
6. If you are approached by someone, try to get their description and a license plate and description of their vehicle and call the police immediately.