BEL AIR, Md. — A Cecil County man is facing attempted kidnapping charges after a girl was allegedly grabbed by the neck in the Majors Choice neighborhood of Bel Air.
"Our investigators, pretty much, stayed around the clock for a couple of days, looking for leads on this case," Bel Air Police Chief Charles Moore said in an interview with WMAR-2 News.
Police said the incident happened Saturday afternoon, when a girl was walking along the sidewalk on Majors Choice Drive and Grayson Square, when someone accosted her.
Bel Air Police credit camera footage in attempted kidnapping arrest
"She said that the individual grabbed her forcefully, and of course that startled her, and when that happened, she screamed and ran away. So the suspect at that point did not pursue her but looked like he returned to the suspect vehicle and left the area," Moore described.
Detectives gathered doorbell camera footage, and charging documents say cameras tracked an SUV through town. Cell tower data also placed the suspect at the location of the attempted abduction.
"They immediately began scouring the neighborhood looking for surveillance footage," Moore explained, "And lo and behold, they found one residence that had some very grainy footage, kind of captured most of the incident. But again, it was very difficult to make out a lot of the details. From that footage, we were able to see that it was either a white or grayish vehicle. We knew it was an SUV."
READ MORE: Bel Air police arrest suspect accused of grabbing young girl by the neck on Majors Choice Drive
"[Detectives] got a couple very good leads. They got the suspect vehicle, got the registration, were able to track it down to an individual," Moore added.
Christopher Lane, 32, of Conowingo is charged with attempted kidnapping. Lane is scheduled to be tried on July 30.
The girl is physically unharmed, police said.
Neighbors said the arrest brought some relief, but questions remain.
"Scary, but at the same time, happy that there is somewhat of a resolution to a really scary event," Becki Schneitzinger, a neighbor, told WMAR-2 News.
Schneitzinger said the circumstances still weigh on her mind.
"It's still kind of scary about, what are the circumstances around, and why here?" Schneitzinger added.
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