Barrie police are reminding residents — especially women and girls — to be extra cautious following a complaint Tuesday evening at Georgian Mall.
“Any unknown person who approaches you at any place, you should be cautious about what’s going on,” said Barrie police communications co-ordinator Peter Leon. “It comes right back to the fact that they are strangers.
"No matter how old you are or how young you are, the advice is pretty straightforward and should be simple for people. You don’t go with that person no matter what," he added.
In an online post on the Barrie Concerned Citizen’s Group Facebook page, Haley Morrison shared that she had a “strange man” holding a white notepad approach her in the north-end mall telling her he was in a “weird predicament” and asking her to go to his car with him.
“(He) told me it would only be 30 seconds and he would give me $20 … I told him I had an appointment and needed to go and he proceeded to tell me it would be fast, but I walked away as fast as I could. I also witnessed him do this to other females right before me,” she says in her post.
Morrison also says that she shared the interaction with guest services immediately and also notified city police.
“I just wanted to make it known that this is happening and, although it might not have been anything serious, it still is alarming that he was only targeting females and not asking men for help,” she wrote. “Be safe out there, ladies.”
Leon says informing security about any incident that a person finds concerning is always “the right thing to do."
“She gave a description, which is excellent. It was looked into by mall security and they moved him along,” he said. “She did everything right and we applaud her for her actions.
"Obtaining a very detailed description certainly would have assisted mall security with locating the individual and having him move along," Leon added. "There appeared to be a reason for him approaching her that was legitimate, but not necessarily based on the grounds that he had shared with her initially.”
People just need to be cautious and aware of their surroundings at all times, he said, especially if they’re approached by someone unknown to them.
“This person did everything right. She went back into the mall. She talked to the office who provided the office who notified security, and then police were notified as well. It’s important for us to know because it comes down to the safety of people.”
