A grand jury indicted the Jamaica man who allegedly attempted to abduct a young girl in Ridgewood — only to be foiled by a good Samaritan — in December of last year, prosecutors announced this week.
Relyn Estrada, 40, appeared in Queens Criminal Court on Feb. 4 for arraignment on a two-count indictment charging him with second-degree kidnapping and endangering the welfare of a child. He was ordered held without bail and to return to court on March 11, Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said.
Estrada allegedly attempted to lure an 11-year-old girl into his car as she walked along Centre Street in Ridgewood on the morning of Dec. 15, 2018. His efforts were thwarted when the child screamed for help — and received it from local resident Alexander Salas, who intervened and subsequently detained Estrada while waiting for police to arrive.
“The defendant is accused of physically forcing this girl into his vehicle — despite the youngster fighting her hardest to get away from the stranger who approached her on the street,” Brown said. “If not for a brave good Samaritan who stepped in to help, the fate of the girl could have been horribly different.”
Law enforcement sources said the trouble began at 7:15 a.m. on Dec. 15, 2018, when the 11-year-old girl was walking in the area of Centre Street and Seneca Avenue. Estrada, while inside his own vehicle, motioned for her to come to him. When she ignored his instructions, authorities said, Estrada allegedly drove up ahead of her, then stopped and exited the vehicle.
Police said Estrada then allegedly ordered her to come with him, prompting the girl to say, “No, thank you,” then run away in the opposite direction. Estrada then allegedly chased the girl down, grabbed her arm and backpack and dragged her into the front seat of his vehicle.
While inside the car, prosecutors said, the girl kicked her legs and screamed. That’s when Salas, who lives nearby, heard the commotion and saw the victim struggling to escape. Salas ran out of his home and asked the girl if she knew the man. She said that she didn’t and screamed for help again.
Salas managed to keep the girl away from Estrada and held him until officers from the 104th Precinct arrived to take the suspect into custody.
If convicted, Estrada could spend up to 25 years behind bars.
