School Issues Alert After Suspicious Driver Tries to Give Student a Ride

Petaluma police are informing city schools about a man who seemed insistent about giving a Casa Grande High School student a ride to school Tuesday.

The 16-year-old girl was walking in the area of Clelia Court around 10:20 a.m. when a Hispanic man in a Dodge or Toyota SUV asked if she knew where a street in Petaluma is located, police said.

The girl said she did not know and the driver asked where she went to school and offered her a ride, police said. The girl refused the offer and the man said it was fine and he would give her a ride to Casa Grande High School, police said.

The girl became uncomfortable because the man seemed pushy about her accepting a ride and she moved away from the suspect, police said. The driver then sped away from the scene.

The driver is in his 40s with short black hair and was wearing a dark short-sleeve T-shirt, police said. The vehicle is a newer, dark green Dodge or Toyota SUV. Anyone with information is asked to call police at (707) 778-4372.