Man arrested in connection with attempted child abduction in the Canary Islands

Police have arrested a man in connection with allegedly attempting to abduct a three-year-old girl in the Canary Islands in January last year.

The 62-year-old was arrested on suspicion of attempted kidnap in London, after a public appeal was launched by Thames Valley Police.

Following the arrest, investigating officer Detective Constable John Swallow said, ‘We arrested a man in the London area in connection with this incident earlier today. The investigation is ongoing and I want to thank the public for their continued help.’

In January last year the family from Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, were on holiday in Costa Teguise, Lanzarote, when a man attempted to kidnap the girl in a shopping centre. The girl’s father noticed she was missing, and saw the little girl being led around a corner into an alleyway by a man who was holding her by the hand. He shouted out and ran up to his daughter, pulling her away from the man who then left the scene.

The family were on the beach a short time later and saw the same man, who spoke fluent English, sitting between some rocks and acting suspiciously.

The victim’s father confronted the suspect, but he left before police arrived. Luckily, the quick-thinking family took photos of the man in an attempt to identify him.