UPDATE: Stranger Encounter Has Fairlands Elementary On Alert

Updated as of 7:00 a.m. on Nov. 17:

Parents at a Pleasanton school have been alerted to a suspicious incident that occurred on campus.

A car drove by the open gate at Fairlands Elementary on the West Las Positas side of the school on Nov. 6.

The car was reportedly driven by a woman and occupied by a male teenager who offered a nearby student candy to get in the car. The student did not go with the stranger and reported the incident to his mother.

According to the letter, the Fairlands staff reported to incident to Pleasanton Police.

The Principal of Fairlands Elementary sent out the following letter to parents:

Dear Parents, 

We want to inform you about an incident that occurred at approximately 3:10 on Wednesday, November 7th. A Fairlands student was outside the gate that opens onto West Las Positas. An older woman, in a "white or light blue" car, was driving by with a teenager. The car slowed down and the teenager told the student if he got into the car, he would give him candy. The student immediately walked to his mom who was a few feet away and told her what happened. Meanwhile, the car continued driving and did not stop. The student and parent returned to the school and the police were called. The police arrived a few minutes later and took a report. Fairlands Elementary is making every effort to secure our campus and ensure that the safety of our students is our first priority. We are working with the Pleasanton School District, Police Department, Y-Kids, and Fairlands Staff, and Parent Volunteers to be sure that we have all the necessary safety procedures in place.

This incident provides a great opportunity for families to talk about safety measures. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. 

Sincerely,

Julie Berglin Interim Principal Fairlands Elementary

Pleasanton Police Lt. Jeffery Bretzing confirmed the incident and said officers searched the surrounding areas but were not able to find any people or cars matching the suspect described by the student.

Bretzing wrote:

"No crime occurred and it was documented as an incident. The only difference is our report indicated it took place on 11/6/12 at 1510 hours.  Also, the vehicle did not stop and a rear passenger was the one who reportedly made the comment to the student. There were no other witnesses to the comment being made. As always, we treat these types of incidents very seriously and work with the school district to help ensure the safety of the students and staff."

Pleasanton Unified School District Superintendent Parvin Ahmadi wrote:

"The Pleasanton Unified School District takes the safety of our students and staff seriously. Parents were informed about the report and the Police Department was contacted. We always work closely with the Police Department to assess the situation and notify parents and schools as needed."

The Pleasanton Unified School District issued this comment:

"When an incident happens at a school site, we contact the police to make a report (we are all mandated reporters).  We work closely with them to determine if there is a threat to safety for our students & staff and will send an email to surrounding schools or to the whole district if deemed appropriate. If an incident is not a threat, but just something that made a student uncomfortable, we still contact the police to file a report, but do not send out a district-wide email, as that would unneccessarily incite panic.   

The incident at Fairlands was not deemed a threat.  As the police reported to you, "No crime occurred and it was documented as an incident" and the parent of the student was a few feet away. Since that was the case, there was no need to send a district-wide email about the incident.  We believe this incident was handled appropriately."