Police were today investigating reports that a young boy was snatched off the street and bundled into a van.
Surrey officers released images of a child’s bike left at the scene in Redhill at about 4.43pm yesterday.
They are also looking for a black van seen by a witness. Officers said they were taking the report about the boy, thought to be six or seven, “extremely seriously” and had launched a “large operation” involving a “significant number” of officers.
The force is trawling CCTV to find evidence of the alleged incident in Redstone Hill. The van was reported to have an 02 licence plate. One report involving a black VW Transporter has been ruled out after the owner was traced.
The boy is described as white and about 4ft tall, wearing a red T-shirt and navy jeans.
No children matching his description have been reported as missing but a spokesman said the “assumption” in the “possible abduction” is that it is a child who has links to the local area or lived nearby. He was thought to be on his own when the alleged incident happened.
Superintendent Bex Smith of Surrey police said: “If you were in the area, perhaps commuting to or from Redhill station, please get in touch.”
Anyone with any information should call police on 101, quoting Operation Bigfoot.
