A Utah boy’s quick-thinking helped him get to safety after running away from a kidnapper Tuesday.
The boy, identified as Aiden, 9, told KSTU-TV that he was walking in a Saratoga Springs neighborhood to meet a friend nearby when he was snatched by a strange man in a tan Chevy Tahoe. The boy said he was able to escape and used his Gizmo Watch to call for help.
"He got out of the car, walking, and then he just charged at me," Aiden said. "I ran as fast as I could, but I tripped and I fell and he caught me."
He said he was thrown into the back of the vehicle and the man tried to put duct tape over his mouth so he wouldn’t scream. Aiden said he punched it away.
The boy said he pleaded with the man to let him go, but ended up jumping from the vehicle and spraining his ankle.
"My family is more important than breaking a bone," he said.
Aiden said he hid behind a dumpster as the man searched for him. The child said he used his Gizmo Watch to call his mom.
"Apparently my step-dad answered it because he was holding my mom's phone, and I could hear wheels squealing from his car," Aiden said.
The watch allows children to make calls and received calls with up to four different people. The device also has a built-in GPS and said he wasn’t sure how long he would’ve had to wait in the dumpster without it.
"If moms are watching this, say this to your kids, 'Get a Gizmo for them,'" Aiden said.
Police are asking for the public’s help in finding the would-be kidnapper. They described person as a white man with long black hair and a goatee.