SEATTLE — Two men were arrested in separate attempted kidnappings in Seattle Tuesday, according to the Seattle Police Department.
Seattle police received a report around 11:15 a.m. of a man who tried to force a 10-year-old girl into a vehicle in Seattle's View Ridge neighborhood.
A witness told officers he was working as an Amazon delivery driver when he saw three juvenile females walking on 45th Avenue NE.
A black BMW hatchback was parked next to the three females.
A 38-year-old male, identified as Nash Miller, got out of the driver's seat, opened the trunk, walked over to the females and picked up a 10-year-old, according to a police report. Miller then allegedly put the female into the trunk and began to close it. However, due to the girls screams, a witness and the girl's babysitter ran over and pulled her from the trunk before the suspect could get back in the car.
While the rescue was happening, Miller allegedly punched the babysitter in the stomach multiple times, according to a police report.
The 10-year-old said she did not know Miller.
A Tesla driven by the delivery driver recorded the entire incident.
About 20 minutes after the attempted kidnaping, a male driving a black BMW hatchback was reportedly following an 18-year-old and her mother for at least a block in the same area. They called police to report the incident.
Seattle police officers located Miller's vehicle in Fremont and arrested him. He was booked into King County Jail.
Miller was charged Sept. 2 with second-degree attempted kidnapping.
Downtown attempted kidnapping
Around 12:50 p.m., multiple witnesses called 911 and reported that a man tried to grab a child off the street in downtown Seattle.
A woman and her 7-year-old son were walking when the suspect tried to engage in a conversation with the boy. The boy's mother took her son and attempted to walk away, but the suspect followed them, she later told police.
When they reached the intersection of Second Avenue and Madison Street, the suspect tried to pull the boy away from his mother. A struggle ensued, but was broken up by a passerby, according to a police report.
When police arrived, the 45-year-old suspect appeared "extremely escalated" and was causing a disturbance in the area, according to a police report. Someone passing by responding officers said they had seen the suspect punch a male in the chest.
The suspect, identified as Dustin Timmer, was arrested for attempted kidnapping and booked into King County Jail.
Timmer was charged with first-degree attempted kidnapping on Sept. 1.
Timmer has previous misdemeanor convictions in Washington state and California, Alaska and Nebraska. Two cases were referred to the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office; one in 2013 and another in 2020.
In 2013, Timmer faced felony harassment, but was later found to lack the capacity to understand the nature of proceedings. Because of this, he could not face criminal charges under the law and was ordered to be civilly committed.
In 2020, Timmer faced a felony malicious mischief charge after he allegedly broke a window at The Lodge Bar and Grill in Seattle. In that case, the question of his competency was raised by the defense. After two competency evaluations, a judge said Timmer lacked the capacity to understand the nature of the proceedings and could not face criminal charges.
Concerns in the community
It’s still a shock to the tight-knit View Ridge community.
“It’s been a very safe neighborhood. kids walking to the park, kids walking to the grocery store by themselves,” said Emmett Oliver, who grew up in the area.
“Everybody is just really on high alert and those with kids are vigilant now,” he added.
One neighbor KING 5 spoke with asked not to be named or show her face. She saw the black SUV pull out and speed away.
“I heard screaming and that’s probably what got me outside,” she said.
“I think it was God's intervention that she was able to rush out so quickly and save the young girl. A split second later and she would have been gone,” Oliver said.
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