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A28 u.s. news
Diabierna 21 Mei 2021

Girl purposely got blue slime on would-be kidnapper's arms

(AP) — As Alyssa Bonal Missing & Exploited Chil- dence behind, like on Law &
fought the strange man dren says abductions by Order SVU.’ We’ve watched
who had just grabbed strangers are rare, making up probably every episode on
her by the throat, threat- less than 1% of reported cas- Hulu. She’s a smart cookie,
ened her with a knife and es. Most abductions are com- she thinks on her toes.”
dragged her toward his mitted by someone known
van, she had the presence to the child, such as a parent Amber Bonal said she had
of mind to get as much who doesn’t have custody. been walking her daughter
of the blue slime she had to the bus stop every morn-
been playing with on him The security camera video ing since the strange man ap-
as possible, so police could shows Alyssa alone on the proached the girl, but as they
identify him. traffic island at 7 a.m. Tues- were leaving Tuesday, her
day. A white van passes her 18-month-old daughter sud-
The 11-year-old Pensacola — she looks at it as it drives denly needed a diaper change
girl said she learned the im- away. She had told her mom and she feared Alyssa would
portance of evidence from and teacher two weeks earlier miss her bus.
her favorite TV show, the that a man in a white van had
long-running detective se- approached her at the bus “I told her to go ahead and
ries “Law & Order: Special stop, speaking Spanish to her I would be out there in a
Victims Unit.” Alyssa had and making her feel uncom- minute. I start changing the
been attacked Tuesday as she fortable. baby’s diaper. I hadn’t even
awaited her school bus, her The van returned a minute finished changing the diaper
near-abduction captured by later and stopped. The driver before she ran back in the
a neighbor’s home security jumped out and ran at Alyssa, house,” Bonal said.
camera. reaching behind himself as if
pulling a knife. She grabbed Bonal said the pandemic has
“I was able to get the slime her backpack and tried to been hard on the family. A
onto his upper arm and a flee, but the man put her in single mom, she hasn’t been
little bit on his lower arm,” a headlock and dragged her able to run her house clean-
Alyssa told NBC’s “Today” toward his van. ing business and struggles to
show in an interview that pay her rent. But Alyssa takes
aired Thursday. “I knew that She struggled, saying she the hardships in stride, she
might be better evidence if kicked at his legs, caus- said, making the honor roll
the cops do find him.” ing them both to fall to the at her elementary school and
ground. She broke free and looking after her baby sister.
Her intuition proved right. Dees, questioned Stanga’s described the silver bumper ran back to the nearby mo-
Escambia County Sheriff arrest during a Wednesday in their bulletin to the public. bile home park where she She said her daughter is do-
Chip Simmons said when court hearing, saying Alyssa They say Stanga was also seen lives with her mom and two ing well and perhaps doesn’t
his detectives arrested Jared did not definitively pick him making a purchase at a nearby siblings. The man ran back to fully comprehend what
Paul Stanga late Tuesday after from a photo lineup and ini- convenience store minutes his van and sped away. might have happened if the
a massive manhunt, his arms tially said her attacker was after the attack wearing the attacker had gotten her into
were still streaked with blue Hispanic. Stanga is white. same clothes as the assailant, “Her first words were, the van.
dye. and he texted his boss saying ‘Somebody tried to kidnap
Prosecutors said the evidence he would be late because he me. He grabbed me by my “If she would have been taken
Stanga, 30, remained jailed against Stanga is strong. In had to take his child to school throat and he had a knife,’” …” Amber told the newspa-
Thursday on $1.5 million addition to the slime, the sil- — even though the child is her mother, Amber Bonal, per, covering her eyes as she
bond on charges of attempt- ver bumper of his van had just attending school online. told the Pensacola News began to cry. “If she would
ed kidnapping, battery and been painted black — detec- Journal. “She said, ‘Mom, I have been taken, I could have
assault. His attorney, Robert tives during the manhunt had The National Center for had to leave some sort of evi- lost her forever.”

Student seeks changes at U-Michigan after sexual misconduct

(AP) — A student sued the The class-action lawsuit The Associated Press. Investigators found that alle- university staff, especially in
University of Michigan on seeks a series of reforms, in- “We’ve seen U of M poli- gations about Philbert’s con- health clinics. It also seeks
Thursday to try to force cluding the appointment of cies have not been effective duct had reached campus of- a comprehensive but easier
changes in how the school an independent monitor to in protecting students,” she ficials at certain points of his system for students to report
protects the campus from enforce the steps. said. “A lot of times students career but no one intervened. sexual misconduct and get
sexual misconduct, the have been ignored. There is In Anderson’s case, no one help.
latest strike after a year of “There is a difference be- room for them to improve.” took meaningful action, de-
scandals involving a doc- tween having policies and spite a “destructive pattern of “Sadly, the decades-long An-
tor and the chief academic having policies that are emp- The school has been rocked sexual misconduct,” accord- derson debacle was not a one-
officer. ty and not being enforced,” by allegations from hundreds ing to a report by the Wilm- off for the U of M culture. ...
Josephine Graham, 21, told of men who said they were erHale law firm, which was After Anderson left campus,
molested by the late Robert hired by the school to inter- U of M did not adequately
Anderson, a campus doctor view victims. reform its culture,” the law-
who spent nearly 40 years at suit filed in Detroit federal
the school. He died in 2008. The Anderson report, re- court states.
leased last week, said the
Separately, the university paid university has improved its The university said it hasn’t
$9.25 million to eight women policies related to reporting been served yet with the
who reported emotional or sexual misconduct by staff lawsuit. It has acknowledged
sexual abuse by Martin Phil- but still can change the cul- “failings” by officials in the
bert, who over 25 years rose ture through better training, Philbert matter and rec-
from professor to provost, among other efforts. ognized widespread harm
the senior academic official. caused by Anderson.
He was removed in 2020. The lawsuit, too, takes aim
at training and education for