Michigan State Police said the 8-year-old girl’s father confronted the suspect before he fled on a Segway-type vehicle.
BRIGHTON TOWNSHIP, MI — A suspect is in custody after Michigan State Police said a man tried to lure an 8-year-old girl into a wooded area Wednesday evening in Brighton Township.
The report drew a search by troopers from the Brighton Post and put residents in the Alger Pine subdivision on alert. Police said the girl was riding her bicycle on Rosemary Lane around 7 p.m. when she was approached by a man who appeared to be going door to door as a traveling salesman.
Investigators said the man asked the child to come into the woods, where he told her he would give her “a surprise.” The girl’s father confronted the man and questioned what he was doing, police said. The suspect then left the area on a Segway-type vehicle. Troopers searched nearby streets after the report but did not immediately find him. Police later said the suspect had been located and taken into custody. Authorities have not released his name.
The encounter was reported in the area of Rosemary Lane near Old U.S. 23 in Livingston County. Police said the suspect was last seen after the confrontation near Old U.S. 23 and Alger Drive. Investigators initially described him as a white or possibly Hispanic male wearing blue shorts, a black polo shirt and a light green ball cap. Police also said he appeared to be wearing an identification badge from a pest control company. Officials have not said whether the badge was real or tied to any business.
State police said troopers and detectives were continuing to canvass the area after the report. Investigators said they planned to look for surveillance video and speak with nearby residents as part of the case. The attempted abduction report involved no public allegation that the child was physically harmed. Police have not released further details about where the suspect was found, how he was identified or whether any property was seized during the investigation.
Neighbors told local reporters the report was unsettling because children often play outside in the subdivision. Carl Brito, who lives nearby, said he first learned of the situation through a doorbell camera alert. “The Ring said there was an abduction alert in the area, but I had no idea it was this close to my house,” Brito said. Another neighbor, Jim Hall, said the neighborhood is usually quiet and that door-to-door salespeople have become common in the area.
The case remains in the early legal stage. Police have said the suspect is in custody, but officials had not announced charges or released arraignment information as of the latest public updates. Investigators also had not disclosed the suspect’s age or hometown. Additional information is expected from Michigan State Police as detectives finish interviews, review any video and submit reports for possible charging decisions.
Michigan State Police said anyone with information about the incident or suspicious activity in the area may contact the Brighton Post. The next public milestone is expected to be a police update or court filing if prosecutors authorize charges.
Author note: Last updated May 30, 2026.