HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – Police arrested a man and woman from Broward County after they attempted to lure a 9-year-old girl into a van in Hollywood, according to arrest documents obtained by Local 10 News on Tuesday.
Michael Diaz, 34, of Davie, and Taiana Tersano, 31, of Hollywood, are facing multiple charges, including luring and enticing a child, after police arrested them Friday.
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According to arrest reports from the Hollywood Police Department, the incident happened just before 4:30 p.m. in the 1900 block of McKinley Street, in the city’s Royal Poinciana neighborhood. Tersano lives nearby, police said.
The HPD reports state that the girl’s mother called police to report that a man, woman and their 7-year-old pulled up in a white panel van and tried to lure her daughter inside; the 9-year-old later told police that Tersano rolled the window down and told her “come here.”
The girl’s mother was inside of her home at the time, but police said that her boyfriend was outside sitting in his car watching their daughter play when the two showed up.
He told police that he saw the van pull up and watched Tersano get out, leading him to get out of his car and get in between Tersano and the girl in order to keep her from being kidnapped, the reports state.
Police said Tersano spit in his face and punched him, then made another attempt to take the girl; the man then punched Tersano in self-defense.
Both Diaz and Tersano said they were going to “come back and kill all of you,” the reports state. Police said Tersano ran back into the van and the two drove away.
A witness gave police a similar account; he told officers that Diaz yelled at Tersano to “Grab the f---ing kid!” as she attempted to take the girl, the reports state.
Police stopped Diaz and Tersano in the 900 block of North Federal Highway soon after after the girl’s mother provided a description of their vehicle, the reports state. Police said their 7-year-old was in the back of the van “not seated and surrounded by loose mechanical tools.”
Child protective services officials later took custody of their child.
Diaz and Tersano were both charged with luring and enticing a child and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Additionally, authorities allege that Tersano violently resisted arrest, adding to her charges.
The pair were no longer listed in Broward County jail records as of Tuesday afternoon.