The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office is seeking information from the public about a child luring incident that occurred yesterday in Bothell.

A 12 year-old female Skyview Junior High student reported that as she was walking home around 3 p.m. from her bus stop at the intersection of 196th Street Southeast and 24th Drive Southeast when a man sitting in a parked pick-up truck jumped out, grabbed her and yelled, “Boo!” The girl said it appeared that the man then noticed three other students in the area, got back into his vehicle and fled the area. Witnesses to the incident corroborated her account of events.

The suspect is described as a white male in his mid-40s, 5-foot-8 to 5-foot-11, with gray medium-length hair and a gray beard. He was driving a tan colored standard-cab pickup truck.

According to Shari Ireton, director of communications for the Snohomish County Sheriffs Office, incidents similar to this one are categorized as luring until the suspects motives can be ascertained.

“Walk in groups, especially as days get shorter … and it gets darker earlier,” Ireton said. “Tell an adult about suspicious activity, adults too. We’d rather send out a deputy than not…”

If you see suspicious activity or know anything about this incident, please call 911.