12-year-old girl approached in Canton in broad daylight

Police in Canton are alerting residents to a possible stranger danger situation.

A 12-year-old girl was walking in a neighborhood on Monday, February 20 near the area of Cherry Hill and Denton roads when she says she was approached by a white man in his 30s. She told police the man pulled up alongside her and asked her to get in his car.

The girl ran away to a friend's house in the area. The suspect was last seen at that intersection.

Police say the suspect was driving a silver or gray 4-door midsize sedan. The make and model are not known. The suspect is a man between 30 - 40 years of age with a dark goatee. He was wearing a beanie cap and a hooded sweatshirt.

"We want parents to take advantage of this and talk to their children about stranger danger, giving them a plan, making them know that they need to be aware of their surroundings," says Patty Esselink from the Canton Police Department. "We don't have a lot of situations like this in the area, so when this does happen it is a very serious situation."

Students in Canton were out from school on February 20 as part of their midwinter break.

Police are asking that suspicious vehicles be reported. If you have any information you're asked to call the Canton Police Department at 734-394-5400.