UPDATE: 6 p.m.
A Northern Michigan girl was saved form being kidnapped thanks to the heroic actions of her older teenage brother.
State police are not releasing the exact location to protect the identity of the victim, but we do know it happened outside of the city in Alpena Township.
Michigan State Police from the Alpena Post says an 8-year-old girl was mushroom hunting in her backyard when a 17-year-old boy came out of the woods, covered her mouth and attempted to drag her back into the woods.
Which is when her 13-year-old big brother, who witnessed what was going on from inside the home, sprung back into action.
“He was able to grab his slingshot and was able to slingshot something that hit hit the suspect right in the head. And that caused him to let go. The girl was able to struggle and get away and he shot another one hit the suspect in the chest and then fled the scene,” the Alpena Post Commander, Lt. John Grimshaw, said.
The suspect then ran off, and was later found hiding at a nearby gas station that same day.
State police credit the quick thinking of the girl’s brother to saving her and helping identify the suspect.
“But what he did also helped us to identify who the suspect was, because obviously he had injuries from getting hit with a slingshot,” Grimshaw said.
State police say the young girl was not injured in the ordeal, but she, along with the parents, are understandably shaken up.
“Fight, fight, do everything you can bite the hand that’s hold in your that has one hand over your mouth. If that’s the case, stomp on their feet, kick them in the shin, do whatever you can to fight. And then if your mouth is free, scream as loud as you possibly can,” Grimshaw said.
Since the suspect is under-aged, his name is being withheld. He is currently lodged in the juvenile section of the jail and his next court date is set for May 17.
State police say the suspect admitted to planning on severely beating the little girl.
12:05 p.m.
Michigan State Police said Friday that an 8-year-old girl escaped from a would-be kidnapper after her brother shot the stranger with a slingshot.
Troopers from the Alpena Post responded to a home in Alpena Township on May 10 for an attempted child abduction. They said that an 8-year-old girl was mushroom hunting in her backyard when an unknown male appeared from the woods.
The male grabbed the girl and held her mouth shut before a struggle ensued, and the girl was able to break free, troopers said.
The girl’s 13-year-old brother witnessed the assault and then shot the suspect with his slingshot in the head and chest.
State police released a description of the suspect, and he was located at a nearby gas station, they said. The suspect was identified as a 17-year-old male from Alpena.
The suspect had obvious signs of injury from the slingshot, with wounds to his head and chest, troopers said. He ultimately confessed to detectives that he planned on severely beating the victim, troopers said.
The juvenile suspect - who is being charged as an adult - was arraigned in the 88th District Court on May 11 on one count of attempted kidnapping/child enticement, one count of attempted assault to do great bodily harm less than murder, and one count of assault and battery.
His next court appearance is on May 17.
