Teen recounts near-abduction

By BRIAN WALKER

Staff Writer

RATHDRUM — Robbie O'Neill was walking home from work on Wednesday night when the Lakeland High junior was allegedly nearly abducted by a male passenger in a pickup.

"The passenger took one step out and grabbed my sleeve, but I clubbed him off by smacking his arms down," said O'Neill, who was walking eastbound from McDonald's on Highway 53 near the high school around 11 p.m. "I just reacted in the moment. The truck then drove off."

O'Neill said the suspect, whom he has never seen before, had a surprised look on his face when he approached the 16-year-old. He said he and others wonder if the two occupants in the truck may have thought he was a girl because he has longer hair and they drove up behind O'Neill.

Melinda Sizemore, O'Neill's mother, said she's proud of her son for his quick response and getting a description of the suspect.

"We're blessed because it could've been a lot worse outcome," she said. "We're lucky that Robbie is as strong and tall as he is or it may not have turned out the way it did."

O'Neill described the suspect as white, in his 40s and having a thin build and short, dark hair. He said the suspect had an underbite.

"By the look of his face, he may have been under the influence of something," O'Neill said. "He was pretty scrawny, but a lot stronger than he looked."

The pickup that drove away eastbound on Highway 53 is an older two-tone vehicle, possibly brown, tan or off-white. O'Neill said he did not obtain a license plate description or see the driver.

O'Neill said a school surveillance video of the pickup has been taken to a Spokane business to get a better image of the vehicle.

The suspect did not say anything during the incident, O'Neill said.

Sizemore said the incident is a reminder to everyone to keep an eye out for your kids.

"All it takes is for something to go wrong once," she said. "If you're not aware of it or your kids are not prepared, you may not get a second chance."

Sizemore said it was "heart-stopping" when O'Neill called her from Super 1 Foods about the attempted abduction.

Anyone with information about the alleged incident or who knows of a pickup that matches the description is urged to call Rathdrum Police at 687-0711.