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28 March 2024

Stranger talks to my girl: Discovery Gardens resident

Published
By Majorie van Leijen

The mother of the 9-year-old Iranian Sara (named changed) did not sleep last night. She was worried about her daughter, who was approached by an unknown man twice, while she was walking the dogs alone.

“A couple of days ago my daughter came home a bit late. I asked her why she was late, and she replied she had been talking to a friendly man, who had asked her about her dog,” said the mother.

She has educated her daughter on the risks of talking to strangers, worried about the intentions of the man. However, a couple of days later the man approached her daughter again.

“Yesterday I saw him talking to my daughter.  I went outside to meet up with my friend, who lives nearby. I saw the man sitting  on a bench next to our building, talking to my daughter. I panicked and called my daughter back.

“She said he was really friendly to her. He had asked her questions such as in which building she lives, what she is doing here and appeared to be very interested in the dog. The dog is what makes her happy; I have a feeling he found something to talk about with her.”

The mother then went upstairs to freshen up, and when she returned the man had left. “If he was really just a friendly man, he would have come to talk to me as well, she argued.

“Talking to a kid is really strange in my eyes. It makes me very scared. I live alone with my daughter and I do not feel safe."

Speaking to Discovery Gardens Security, it appears that no reports were made so far of an unknown man approaching the young.  "We have not heard of any such concern. But if we do, we will monitor the area where the man was seen.

"We cannot catch the man of he does not do anything wrong. But we can keep an eye on him, and when he approaches somebody ask why he does so," said a security officer.

Similarly, Dubai Police said that no action could be taken as long as no violations are made.

"I am lucky to know somebody who works for the CID. He lives two streets away and gave me his phone number. If anything happens I can give him a call," said the mother.

However, the two encounters were enough for her to decide that Sara will no longer walk the dogs alone. "This is sad, because I chose to live in this community for my daughter; here she can play outside and there are many other kids.

"I do not want to tell my daughter not to go outside. But the same man approached her twice; this is what made me panic."