Boise police investigate report of child enticement on the Bench. Here’s what we know

The Boise Police Department is investigating a report of child enticement on the Bench.

Haley Williams, a police spokesperson, told the Idaho Statesman by email Friday that Special Victims Unit detectives along with the department’s School Resource Officer Unit were investigating a single report of child enticement.

The Boise School District is also aware of the incident and sent a notice to families with students in schools in that area Monday. In the letter, the district said a student reported an “alleged child enticement” at about 7:20 a.m. Monday at the corner of Roosevelt and Cassia streets, according to officials at South Junior High.

The student walked away, went back home and told an adult before reporting it to the school, according to the letter.

Police have been notified of other “suspicious circumstances” since the Monday incident, Williams said. She said police investigated other complaints but those showed no signs of a suspect “talking to, touching or specifically approaching children.”

“They were suspicious circumstances and we are glad those calling parties reported it so we could investigate,” Willams told the Statesman by email.

Multiple parents have posted on social media about similar incidents they said happened to their children over the past week.

The school district planned to send out another reminder Friday telling parents to “keep your eyes out,” spokesperson Ryan Hill told the Statesman. Hill said it’s “fairly rare” that a school will get a report like this.

“With school having just started up … if we’re going to hear about it, it tends to be around those times,” Hill said. “Every once in a while we do get reports of somebody trying to harm a child or entice a child.”

The district reminded students and families to follow the “no, go and tell” protocol if they are in an unsafe situation. That involves saying no and screaming, running away and then telling an adult “until they believe you.”

“Children’s safety in our community is our top priority,” Williams told the Statesman. “We encourage anyone who sees suspicious behavior near our parks, schools and homes to call police.”

Story continues

Maria Weeg, the city of Boise spokesperson, said officials “encourage anyone who sees suspicious behavior… to call police.”

“We are so glad to see our community paying attention and reporting incidents of suspicious behavior. We take our kids’ safety very seriously,” Weeg told the…