EUGENE, Ore. -- A disturbing encounter with a man at a park in Eugene has one woman concerned for other parents. The woman took to social media after a man touched her baby and was lurking around watching kids play at Amazon Park.
The woman said she was on the swing set with her baby when a young man came up to her and made a comment about how cute her baby was and then asked their age. That may not seem odd, but she said he continued to lurk around the playground.
She said this wasn't their first run-in with the man. She recognized him from the week before when she took her kids on a walk in the Friendly neighborhood, and that's when he touched her baby.
"Was again suddenly approached from behind by this young man, who stuck their finger in my sleeping baby's hand and began asking questions about them," the woman wrote.
She said the man never introduced himself or asked about anything else.
"He had passed us earlier on the walk and turned his head to look inside the carrier. I was startled by his sudden approach and didn't have time to react before he was already touching my baby," the woman wrote.
The two interactions left her very unsettled and with a bad feeling. Now, she hopes to warn others who frequent the area to be on the lookout.
The woman describes the man as being in his early 20s, white, about 6 feet and 2 inches tall, with hazel or possibly blue eyes and short dark hair.
The situation leaves many people like Claire Renner on high alert.
"I have my little twin grandsons with me here today. If I see anybody, I should probably notify someone to say that I did, only because we want every kid to be safe here," Renner said.
Megan Bostic, who has been taking her kids to the park for the last four months, said it's sad to hear something like this happen, but she feels safe at the park.
"I always look around to see if I've seen anything that looks suspicious at all. I wouldn't come here at night, but during the day, I think it seems pretty safe, and it's always clean," Bostic said.
Police want to remind people that if you see anything suspicious, call their non-emergency line. For the Eugene Police Department, that's 541-682-5111. Immediately get away from the person, but get a good description of them from head to toe.
