Stranger danger: Man tells kids he ran out of gas in St. Clair Shores

ST. CLAIR SHORES, Mich. (WJBK) - Police in St. Clair Shores are warning the public of a suspicious man who approached two teens and claimed he ran out of gas. When he was confronted by an adult, he drove away.

Footage was taken of the man on a home security camera about 6:45 p.m. Tuesday from a house on Benjamin Street between Little Mack and Harper. Police say the man, said to be in his 60s, went to up a couple of 13-year-old boys and told them he had run out of gas.

The kids ran inside the house and told their father. The guy told the father the same story -- but it didn't quite check out when he drove away in an early 2000 model green Chevrolet Trailblazer. It left many to wonder what his true intention was.

"That's pretty bizarre," says neighbor George Jeruzal. "Very suspicious but those kids are smart."

According to people who live on Benjamin Street, it isn't a very busy road so any suspicious vehicle that would drive down would easily stand out.

"We always notice odd vehicles but we weren't around when that happened though," says Jeruzal.

The report triggered an email from the school district warning parents about the stranger danger.

The same email said a man fitting this description was seen following kids in the neighborhood two days prior. FOX 2 is told until they find him they will be stepping up patrols in the neighborhood and warn parents to report anything suspicious.