MIAMI — That is one way to take a bite out of crime.
According to police, a 6-year-old South Florida girl foiled an apparent abduction attempt by biting her assailant in the arm, WPLG-TV reported.
Leonardo Venegas, 32, was arrested Saturday and charged with kidnapping and child abuse causing no great bodily harm, according to Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation booking records.
According to an arrest report, the child had finished playing with her siblings near her Miami home when Venegas allegedly drove up to her apartment complex in a Range Rover Velar at about 8 p.m. EDT on Thursday, WPLG reported.
The victim told police that Venegas grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the rear of a staircase at the apartment complex in the Little Haiti neighborhood of the city, WSVN-TV reported.
The child managed to break free from the man’s grip, but he then lifted her and attempted to carry him away, police said.
That is when the victim bit Venegas on his arm, which caused the man to drop her, WTVJ reported. According to the police report, Venegas allegedly slapped the child before fleeing the scene.
“I bit him,” the 6-year-old told WPLG.
Officer Kiara Delva, a Miami Police Department spokesperson, said the girl was “extremely brave.”
“She fought for her safety, which ultimately saved her from a potentially very dangerous situation,” Delva told WPLG. “We’re thankful that she did enough to save her life.”