Roseville

Elderly man propositions children with roses, money

By Sara Kandel
C & G Staff Writer

ROSEVILLE — Police are on the lookout for an elderly man who approached two children just after 4 p.m. Aug. 1 in Roseville.

The man pulled up to the children while they were walking on Legion, near Washington, on the city’s east end, and offered them $3 to deliver a dozen roses to an unspecified address in the area.

“We did have a suspicious incident in which an older white male driving a black Focus approached two children and offered them a couple dollars each to deliver a dozen roses,” Police Chief James Berlin said.

“The man left by putting his car in reverse and backing his vehicle down the street, leading the investigating officer to think he did not want his license plate seen.”

The flowers came with a card. Written inside the cars was written, “To my wife, love your husband Ricky Joe.” The card did not have the recipient’s name, and he did not provide the children with an address where they could deliver the flowers.

No one in the area knew of a Ricky Joe.

The man was described as having gray hair and was last seen heading Westbound from Legion on Washington in a black Ford Focus with tinted windows. The Roseville Police Department is continuing to look into this incident, but they said that the man made no attempt to lure the boy into his car, and it is unknown if his intentions were nefarious in nature.

Anyone with any information regarding the incident is urged to contact the police department at (586) 447-4483.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Sara Kandel at skandel@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1030.