On the afternoon of June 29th, a 13-year-old girl visited the library at the NPS site in Thibodaux. When done, she called her mother on her cell phone, then went downstairs to await her arrival. While waiting, she saw a man wandering around outside the building, acting strangely. He walked toward her and asked if he could borrow her cell phone, claiming that his was out of minutes. She loaned the man her phone, but suspected that he was only pretending to call someone. When she got up to walk away, the man asked her for her age and name and wanted to know if she needed a ride. The girl became very frightened and headed back into the visitor center. As she did so, he grabbed her upper arm, tugging her toward the parking lot, telling her that he’d give her a ride, and claiming that he was just 16 years old. The girl got away from him and ran into the visitor center for assistance. Local police responded to the 911 call before rangers arrived on scene. The man, who she estimated to be between 25 and 30 years old, had reddish-blonde hair, very white skin and an earring. Rangers at any NPS site that may have had dealings with a person of this description are asked to call case agent Michael Callais at 504-589-2330 ext. 22 or contact him via email.
