8-year-old boy flees masked kidnappers in Long Beach

An 8-year-old boy escaped an apparent kidnapping attempt in Long Beach when he ran away from two masked men who tried to grab him, authorities said.

The two men tried to snatch Lonnie Chavis as he took out the trash around 5:15 p.m. Monday near his home on the 3700 block of Country Club Drive, according to the Long Beach Police Department.

One of the men knocked the boy down, KABC-TV reports, and told him to “stay down.” Police determined the incident was a possible attempted kidnapping.

Lonnie’s mother said she knew something was wrong when he didn’t come back inside after a few minutes.

“It literally takes 30 seconds to go to that dumpster and come back,” his mother, Najah Chavis, told KABC-TV. “I called his name and he wasn’t responding.”

Shortly after the boy’s escape, a woman found him crying in front of a residence in the 3800 block of Pacific Avenue.

“He kicked and wiggled himself away and he just ran, even after they stopped chasing him, he just ran and ran,” Diana Hershey, who lives more than half a mile from the family, told the Long Beach Post. “He was about ready to fall down when I saw him.”

No arrests have been made, and the incident remains under investigation, police said.

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