Good Samaritan Beaten Up By Toddler's Father After Trying to Help Lost Child
A Good Samaritan has been beaten and slandered on social media all for helping a lost child. The toddler's father reportedly attacked the man after being told his child was being kidnapped and subsequently posted the man's information on social media.
The two-year old girl went missing at a local softball game where the he was spotted by the man who decided to help her find her parents. However, when the parents were told their daughter was walking with a stranger they immediately assumed he was a kidnapper.
The girl's father said he repeatedly punched the man "five or six times" before his friends started kicking him. He later posted pictures of the man on social media labelling him as a kidnapper and a sexual predator. The post was also shared by his friends and family and subsequently went viral.
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The man was later revealed to be innocent and even signed a waiver saying he wouldn't press charges. "He's a parent of two daughters so he could understand how they reacted," the man said.
However, the father and girl's family aren't buying it and seemed agitated when told that they Good Samaritan wouldn't be arrested.
"So I guess in Lakeland, you can kidnap a child and get away with it," the father said to authorities.
Sgt. Gary Gross of the Lakeland Police Department told CNN that the post suggested that people band together to run the man out of town. This prompted the man to leave town with his family out of fear.
The girl's father has showed no remorse in what he did and maintains that the man was indeed a kidnapper. "They still think their daughter was trying to be kidnapped," said Gross. "They're just not listening."
The Lakeland Police Department warned people that the post is spreading misinformation and urging everyone not to believe everything they see on social media. Sgt. Gross has spoken to the Good Samaritan who says he does not regret what he did and if presented with the same opportunity he would do it again.
