A MAN has been sentenced to four years in prison for two counts of child abduction after attempting to abducted two children in a park.
Aaron Madden, 37, offered the children money and attempted to take them with him during the incident in Port Talbot, Wales.
The children managed to alert a family friend about what had happened and were returned home safely.
"Both children were understandably distressed at what happened but otherwise physically unharmed," said Detective Sergeant Kristian Burt of South Wales Police.
"Thankfully neither of the children were persuaded to go with Aaron Madden.
"However, I fully understand the concerns of parents and guardians in light of this incident, and I would like to reassure the public that child abductions are, thankfully, incredibly rare."
Offered money
The incident was reported to police just before 5.05pm on Monday, November 21, 2022.
Madden had reportedly approached the children, aged 10 and 11, in a park in the Baglan area of Port Talbot and offered them £20 to get him lost in the park.
He remained with the children for some time, speaking with them.
As they tried to walk away from him, Madden placed his arms around their shoulders, appearing to usher them to walk with him.
However, the children saw a family friend and told her what happened.
Both children were returned home safely, while Madden was located a short time later and arrested.
At Swansea Crown Court, Madden was sentenced to four years for each of the offences, to run concurrently.
