A group of teenage boys in Florida found it suspicious that a middle-aged man was asking them to accompany him to another location to film a commercial. They quickly declined and reported the incident to the police, who later learned that the man had tried to lure other teens to his car in a similar fashion several times in the past.
Man asked teenagers to help him film a commercial
On Saturday, August 22, at around 4:45 p.m., 43-year-old Alexander Mak allegedly asked four teenage boys in a public parking lot to help him with “filming a commercial,” according to a post by the Huntley Police Department on its official Facebook page.
He asked the boys to come with him to an undisclosed location in his black Cadillac Escalade, but the teens declined and left the area before reporting the incident to police. The police says that Mak did not make physical contact or use physical force during the encounter.
Upon further investigation, officers discovered the identity of the man as a resident of Miami, Florida. They uncovered two separate incidents involving Mak where he had also allegedly approached a teenager or young adult and tried persuading them to help him film a commercial. While there were no allegations of physical contact or force in these encounter either, witnesses say that he was pushy and persistent.
On August 23, Mak voluntarily reported to the Huntley Police Department for questioning and was later charged with four misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct.
The police commended the teenagers for removing themselves from situations that made them uncomfortable and reporting the incident to police. “Their actions provide an important reminder for parents and caregivers to regularly talk to children and teens about personal safety,” the department said.
While some commenters were confused about what crime Mak had committed, others pointed out that there are more appropriate ways for the man to get young adults to participate in filming a commercial.
One wrote, “There are correct ways to get in touch with the youth to film a commercial, if that was his actual intention. Trying to lure them into a car crosses a line into kidnapping, or at least, attempted kidnapping.”
