A Mexican illegal immigrant who has been deported from the United States five times was arrested on New Year's Eve after he allegedly tried to kidnap an Alabama teenager in a store parking lot around 5:40 p.m., officials said. Ta.
Yodi Centeno Melchor, 31, was charged with attempted second-degree kidnapping and is being held on $100,000 bail in connection with the incident.
Elmore County Sheriff Bill Franklin told Fox News Digital: “When he pulled into the parking lot, he apparently calmed down the girl who was trying to move her stroller.” “And she was in that area or near his car. But he calmed her down and came near the car. She's a young girl. She's 17 years old.”
Another man nearby apparently saw the girl in “distress” and confronted Melchor, at which point Melchor allegedly fled the scene, prompting the sheriff's office to issue a red alert for the area. BOLO) was issued.
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Yodi Centeno Melchor, 31, was charged with attempted second-degree kidnapping and is being held on $100,000 bail in connection with the case. (Elmore County Sheriff's Office)
Franklin said the sheriff's office later obtained a search warrant for the suspect's cell phone, which contained a “notes” section detailing “what he was trying to do.”
“He was going to give her $200, so I won't go into the intricacies of that, but he was obviously trying to convince her to get in the car,” the sheriff explained.
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Authorities don't know exactly when Melchor wrote the note, but the victim told authorities he probably showed it to the girl as a way to tell her he intended to offer her money.
The alleged kidnapping attempt occurred in a parking lot in Holtsville. (Google Maps)
Employees at the Holtsville store where the incident occurred shared video footage from the parking lot with authorities, who were able to identify the suspect's license plate number.
A few days later, authorities stopped a vehicle matching the one at the crime scene in a county 30 miles north of Elmore with a license plate matching the suspect vehicle. The driver, Melchor, also matched the suspect's description.
“We're going to work with ICE. We're always going to work with ICE.”
Authorities were then able to positively identify the suspect and his previous deportations. They are still working to determine why Melchor was deported on five separate occasions.
Elmore County Sheriff Bill Franklin said his office will work with ICE. (Facebook)
After his arrest, a local woman saw Melchor's photo and reported seeing a man with similar appearance in the women's bathroom at Walmart.
Melchor has ties to San Antonio, Texas, and Shelby County, Alabama. He was known to drive between the two areas to visit family, the sheriff said.
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The suspect could face additional charges if authorities are able to identify other victims.
Franklin described the officers as a “great group” who “all have the same plight to keep Elmore County safe.” He added that while Elmore County is not a particularly large or small county, authorities “don't do much about” these types of crimes that occur in the area.
