INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the public’s help in identifying a man they believe tried to kidnap a child from Gifford Middle School.
Thursday afternoon, a suspect who identified himself as Nikromuh Cocoa Koondo, 22, of Orlando, attempted to grab and abduct a 14-year-old boy on the west side of Gifford Middle School as the teen was waiting to be picked up from school, according to authorities.
Authorities do not believe the suspect gave his real name and need help from the public to properly identify him.
The suspect was dirty, not wearing shoes, and appeared to be homeless, according to the Sheriff’s Office. He grabbed the boy telling others that he was there to pick up his child. The teenager pulled away from the man and ran away.
Dep. David Ragley was on scene and chased after the man. He was apprehended by Dep. Ragley and Dep. Denton Kitchell, who was also in the area.
Detectives interviewed the man, who provided a variety of false names and was very evasive during the interview, according to the press release. A fingerprint check of the man shows that he was arrested by the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office in July of 2016.
Detectives still do not believe the name given is the correct one and are attempting to identify him. Detectives are also seeking the help of the public to identify where he has been living and any other information about him.
“The person sitting in our jail has not told us the whole story and is not willing to cooperate,” said Indian River County Sheriff Deryl Loar. “Yesterday he attempted to abduct one of our most vulnerable, our children. Fortunately, our deputies were on scene and able to take him into custody before something bad could happen. Now we need your help to put the pieces together about where this person has been and to determine if he has hurt any other children in the past.”
The subject was booked into the Indian River County Jail under the name Nikromuh Koondo and is being held in lieu of $101,000 bond. He faces charges of kidnapping, resisting arrest without violence, and giving a false name while detained.
Anyone with information about this subject should contact Detective John Clark at (772) 978-6188 reference to case number 2016-147391. You can remain anonymous and possibly be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.00 by contacting Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at 1-800-273-TIPS (8477) or www.tcwatch.org .