A man who purportedly snatched up a 4-year-old girl and tried to make off with her at the Third Thursday gathering in downtown Joplin was thwarted when the child’s mother chased after him and witnesses came to her assistance.
Capt. William Davis of the Joplin Police Department said the incident took place about 9 p.m. outside a bounce house near the intersection of Third and Main streets.
Davis said the suspect — later identified as 28-year-old Johnny L. Arehart — grabbed the girl and was carrying her away. The girl’s mother caught the attention of others in the crowd as she ran after him, and those witnesses surrounded and stopped Arehart and held him for police.
The child escaped physical harm and was returned to her mother, according to Davis.
Arehart, described as homeless by police, remained in custody Friday morning at the Joplin City Jail with child kidnapping charges being sought on him.