A 23-year-old Michigan man was arraigned Thursday afternoon for allegedly attempting to kidnap two girls,
Endi Bala faces attempted unlawful imprisonment and assault and battery charges, in connection with an attempted Clinton Township kidnapping. He also faces child enticement, kidnapping, and reckless driving in connection with another alleged kidnapping in Sterling Heights.
Both incidents happened within an hour of each other on Tuesday, police said.
In the Clinton Township case, bystander Paul Billiter said he was doing yard work when he saw a 15-year-old girl walking by, followed by a car that sped up and made a U-turn. Billiter and other neighbors told 7 News Detroit that moments later, they heard a piercing, indescribable scream.
“She didn’t yell for help. She was just screaming like the way a dog would howl. She was terribly frightened on that,” he said.
“I ran out there, and I grabbed a hold of the guy and he told me, ‘I’m her father.’ The guy was in his 25 to 30, and it was impossible for him to be her father. I yanked him out, and I held him there and I told him, ‘Hey, you’re not going nowhere with this girl. We’re calling the cops, and that’s that.”
The suspect fled but neighbors wrote down his license plate number and contacted 911.
Around an hour later, the same man, later identified as Balam, was apprehended in Sterling Heights after attempting to abduct a 7-year-old girl. Detroit Free Press reports that the child’s aunt thwarted the attempt. earning praise from investigators.
In the Sterling Heights case, the aunt was at a park with her son and niece when she witnessed Bala yanke the 7-year-old from her bike, forcing her into his car. The aunt ended up “diving through” Bana’s car window to help the victim.
“He went right up behind her. He went out of his car, back around, grabbed her, and then tried to get into the passenger seat and we just met right through the middle there,” Alecia Swejkoski told ABC 7.
Bala was given a $2 million bond for the Clinton Township incident and was denied bond for the Sterling Heights incident.
Anyone with information about Tuesday’s incident should contact the Clinton Township Police Department CID at 586-493-7856 and reference case number 24-27830.
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[Feature Photo:Endi Bala/Sterling Heights Police]
