by Eric Peter

San Juan County Sheriff

Recently, the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office received a report alleging that an unknown male tried to pick up a 10-year-old child after a sports practice at the school complex on Orcas Island.

The child reported that practice ended early, and he left the practice area at Buck Park and walked over to the school grounds. He reported that while waiting to be picked up, a Hispanic male in a blue van allegedly drove into the parking lot and said the boy’s dad asked him to stop and pick him up from practice. The child walked away, came back and told the male that he called his dad and his dad was on the way to pick him up. The man allegedly responded with “okay” and drove away without incident. It was also reported to the Sheriff’s Office that there was some confusion at the end of practice, as it ended earlier than expected and there appeared to be some confusion on pick-up times.

While there is no evidence to suggest that anything nefarious was going on or that anyone was trying to take a child, we are taking this matter seriously and an investigation is ongoing. Security video from the school was combed through, and nothing matching the description of the male or the vehicle was seen on the video. The Sheriff’s Office was informed that the school is attempting to look through possible different camera angles to see if anything was caught on video, but at this time, there is no articulable evidence that would lead us to believe that someone was trying to take a child.

We are blessed to live in our island communities away from the high volume of crimes that occur in larger cities. This incident, which appears to be a misunderstanding, serves as a reminder to be cognizant of what’s going on around us and try not to fall into complacency, believing that we are immune from the possibility of something happening in our communities.

The Sheriff’s Office will update if any new, articulable evidence is discovered.