Man tried to molest boy inside restroom at popular metro mall, police say

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DUNWOODY, Ga. — Dunwoody police want to track down a man they say tried to sexually assault a teen in a Perimeter Mall bathroom.

Police say the 13-year-old wash washing his hands last week the man struck up a conversation.

"Was asking him hold old he was, where he lived, if he was from the area, that kind of thing," said Sgt. Robert Parsons with the Dunwoody Police Department.

Parsons said the man told the boy he wanted to show him something then directed him into a bathroom stall.

"The man locked the bathroom stall door and asked the 13-year-old to expose himself," Parsons said.

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When he refused, police say the man grabbed the boy's pants and the boy escaped.

"His father began searching for the suspect trying to find him. The father saw the suspect running through the mall," Parsons said.

Police said what happened highlights a danger many parents don't think about.

"Even at 13 years old, that's still a pretty young age, things can happen. It's never a bad idea for family to escort them. There are people out there with pretty bad intentions,” Parsons said.

Parent Ravon Lewis told Channel 2's Mike Petchenik that she might rethink letting her teen daughter go to the bathroom alone.

"I just think that's horrible," Lewis said. "If it's me and my daughter I always watch her, I always keep my eye out on her."

Police believe the suspect was stalking the kid and his family in several stores before he made his move.

They ask anyone who recognizes him to give them a call.