10-year-old outsmarts kidnapper with brilliantly clever plan

Each year around 840,000 children are reported missing in the US. While many cases are resolved quickly, some children tragically remain missing.

Sammy Green, a 10-year-old from Pottstown,Pa., might have faced such a terrible fate if not for his quick thinking. According to CBS News, Sammy was heading home from school when a woman began following him.

Sam Green, the boy's father, told WPVI that the mysterious woman "started walking with him and asking him where his family was, asking where his dad was." The woman then tried to lure Sammy away to a nearby store called Wawa by saying she knew his father and offering to buy Sammy "anything he wanted."

Sammy told CBS News that the woman's questions made him uncomfortable. He recalled, "She was like, 'I'm going to Wawa. Are you going there? What are you getting from Wawa? Where’s your family at?'"

Fortunately, the boy quickly understood what was really going on. So he entered a store he was familiar with and approached Hannah Daniels, a 17-year-old cashier.

"He was like, 'Pretend like you're my mom,'" Daniels said, "and I was just like, 'all right go to the back.' He didn't want to leave my side."

The nerve-wracking moment was recorded on the security camera at the store, which also shows the unfamiliar woman standing by the door as if she were waiting for Sammy. Daniels walked calmly up to the door, putting herself between Sammy and the woman and locked it from the inside.

Thankfully, the woman eventually walked away. "I was still shaking when I was in here," Sammy recalled.

The shop's owner, Dani Small, praised Daniels for preventing a potential kidnapping. "I am very proud of her. Hannah is a 17-year-old young lady. She did everything correctly," Small said.

Sammy's father was also grateful that his son remembered the safety instructions he had taught him. He shared, "When we were watching that video, I cried every time I saw it. To see my child looking for help because he was afraid basically for his life that cuts you deep."

He emphasized that this incident is an important lesson for all parents. "Think of every scenario and make sure that children know and also practice it. Practice your situations and scenarios just like fire drills."

The woman involved was apprehended by police and is currently getting mental health treatment and has no charges filed against her. Sammy is being hailed as a hero and now has a family friend walk him home from school.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on November 18, 2022. It has since been updated.