I am afraid the facts speak for themself.
It was claimed yesterday that the number of abductions by strangers in the UK is almost as high as abduction by a family member or friend.
I asked for recent examples but obviously there aren't any and a quick read through the Missing Persons Charity website indicates that most missing children are aged between 14 and 18.
In the UK recently there were several examples of abduction of young children by family or friends including Thila Rojas, Martin & Dominika Gajdar, April Jones, Shannon Matthews, Aamina Khan, Emanuel and Felipe Diaz. There isn't a single example of stranger abduction of a young child.
I listed several examples on a previous page.
Here's another one:
Three held after kidnap and assault of girl, 3
· Badly injured victim rescued after police chase
· Child was snatched from home 80 miles away
Rosie Cowan, crime correspondent
The Guardian, Thursday 5 January 2006
Detectives were last night questioning three men suspected of involvement in the kidnap and suspected rape of a three-year-old girl, rescued more than 80 miles away from home after a dramatic police chase.
The child was snatched from a house in the Rumney area of Cardiff around 10.30pm on Monday.
South Wales police arrested a 34-year-old man a short time later and were looking for a grey Ford Escort when, just after 1am, officers in Wiltshire spotted the car driving through a red light in Swindon. They chased the vehicle more than 14 miles along the M4 and the A4 until it crashed near Marlborough.
The girl was flown to hospital in Swindon, where she was treated for "significant injuries" before being discharged last night. It is believed she was hurt in the crash but she had sustained other injuries beforehand.
The 26-year-old driver was arrested at the scene and another man, aged 47, was arrested later in south Wales.
A police spokeswoman refused to specify where the 34-year-old or the 47-year-old were picked up. But she confirmed that forensic officers were examining a property in a block of flats in Newport, about half an hour's drive from Rumney.
Police appealed to the people of Rumney to help them find out what happened.
"This is an extremely rare event, which makes it all the more shocking," said Superintendent Josh Jones, deputy divisional commander for Cardiff. "Rumney is a closeknit community and we ask residents to work closely with us in providing any information they can. We will continue to provide a very visible police presence in the area."
Detective Superintendent Paul Kemp, who is leading the investigation, said: "The allegations are horrendous and I would urge anyone who has further information to contact us." An incident room has been set up at Penarth police station and callers are asked to phone 02920 222111 or speak anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
Last night, detectives were given a further 36 hours to question the 26-year-old and 34-year-old - the two arrested earliest. Describing the car chase, Chief Inspector Charlie Dibble, of Wiltshire police, said: "Our attention was drawn to a grey Ford Escort travelling with no headlights from Blagrove near junction 16 of the M4 shortly after 1am. The vehicle passed through a red traffic light and did not stop. Officers followed the vehicle eastbound along the M4, then off at junction 15 heading south.
"Midway between Marlborough and Hungerford on the A4, the driver of the Escort lost control of the vehicle which then crashed. The male was arrested by traffic officers and the child was taken by the police helicopter to Great Western hospital in Swindon for medical examination. He has now been handed over to South Wales police, as the substantive offences took place there."
The three-year-old's mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said: "It's like a nightmare. You don't expect this to happen to you. The police had everyone out looking for her. They were brilliant."
The Cardiff abduction comes a week after a six-year-old girl was left naked in an alley in North Tyneside after being snatched from her bath and sexually assaulted.
The Tyneside incident is not thought to be connected to the Cardiff case.
http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2006/jan/05/ukcrime.childprotection
