The boy told investigators he was walking home from school when two men in a car pulled up near him. One of the men got out and approached him.
"As the 13-year-old entered the intersection, the vehicle pulled in at a 45-degree angle approximately 3 to 5 feet from the 13-year-old boy, blocking his path," said Jim Amormino, spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff's Department.
Investigators say the driver got out of the car and smiled, then motioned for the boy to get into the vehicle.
"The 13-year-old boy did all the right things: turned around, ran as fast as he could, went to a friend's home. At the friend's home, they notified a relative," said Amormino.
The attempted kidnapping happened around 4 p.m. Tuesday in a normally quiet tree-lined neighborhood in San Juan Capistrano near Edgewood and Village roads. Schools in the area were notified of the incident.
"Kids are running around and I let my 7-year-old go riding his bicycle around the neighborhood with his friends, nothing I would ever worry about," said San Juan Capistrano resident Elizabeth Connor.
"It is scary, it's definitely scary because you don't know what can they do to the kids," said Rosa Cummings, who lives in San Juan Capistrano.
Deputies are looking for the driver, a man between 37-40 years old with a medium build and salt-and-pepper hair. He was wearing a white T-shirt and a black baseball cap with a white rim.
The passenger was described as a 30- to 35-year-old man. He was wearing a black T-shirt.
The car was described as an older model 2-door black sedan with a tan interior and peeling paint.
If you have information related to the case, contact Orange County Crime Stoppers at (855) TIP-OCCS.
