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Read the press release here.

Nannies and Parents Extra Vigilant After Kidnapping Attempt in Central Park

 The police are looking for a woman who tried to snatch a 2-year-old boy from a swing last week, police said.
Nannies and Parents Wary After Attempted Kidnapping at Central Park Playground
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CENTRAL PARK — After a woman tried to kidnap a toddler from Central Park's Heckscher Playground last week, parents and nannies said they've kept a vigilant watch over their charges.

Police are still looking for the unidentified woman they said tried to snatch the 2-year-old boy from a swing at 10:30 a.m. on May 12. He was saved when his 27-year-old nanny swooped in and grabbed him from the suspect's arms before she could leave, police said.

“It was scary, it was unexpected,” said Elma Sescon, a 45-year-old nanny who witnessed part of the incident from the other side of the playground.

“The [boy's] nanny was screaming, 'Why are you taking my kid? What are you doing?'”

Sescon, who's been a regular at the park for roughly five years, said she has always kept a careful watch over her kids, but after the incident she's been extra careful.

"100 percent of my attention has to be on the kids — no phone calls or anything while watching the kids," said Sescon who cares for two boys ages 3 and 15 months.

Other caretakers said that, while the near-abduction hasn't kept them from returning to the park, it's a scary reminder of what could happen.

"We have to be extra careful, there are crazy people everywhere," said Raky Coulibali, who's been a nanny for four years. "It means you can never ever leave the kids alone."

"You come to a big park like Central Park, you can’t let your kids run free,” said Lisa Jones, a stay-at-home mom who was playing with her 1-year-old son, Henry. 

The attempted kidnapping follows a rash of recent robberies in the park and happened a day after the NYPD announced it would beef up patrols in Central Park.

There were no injuries during the incident, police said.

The suspect is described as having short, curly black hair and weighing about 140 pounds. She was last seen wearing dark-colored pants, police said.

Anyone with information regarding the incident should submit tips at Crime Stoppers or call 1-800-577-TIPS.