A Waukesha man was angry at pranksters so he forced one into his car as they ran away. He was then arrested.
WAUKESHA - A group of prankster boys and an upset adult victim turned a ding-dong-ditch session into a more-weighty police matter, resulting in a case that could result in misdemeanor charges against the man.
According to authorities and the Waukesha police log during the incident, the 62-year-old man on Dewitt Court chased the four boys, ages 12 to 13, and caught one of them about 8:15 p.m. May 8 near Wolf Road and Moreland Boulevard. He forced the boy into his car, with the intent of driving him to either the boy's parents homes or to the police station.
As the car was driving away, one of the other boys called police and tried to chase the vehicle on foot. Officers eventually found the car, the man and the boy in the parking lot of Woodman's Food Market, just south of where the pranking incidents had occurred. The boy was reunited with his parents.
The man's overreaction could cost him, police said.
"The adult male was arrested and we will be recommending charges for disorderly conduct, intimidation of a victim and false imprisonment," said Waukesha Police Capt. Dan Baumann in an email Tuesday.
For Waukesha police, the incident served as something unfortunate that served as a warning for parents in general and for all people to act rationally when annoyed by mischief.
"It is important for parents to know what their kids are doing and to understand the seriousness of causing a disturbance like this," Baumann said. "As innocent as this may be, childhood pranks can get out of hand and escalate rapidly. Equally, if not more important, adults please take a second and think the desirability of what you are about to do. This was an avoidable incident."
In a separate phone interview, Baumann added: "When you're an adult, (be an) adult."
Contact Jim Riccioli at (262) 446-6635 or james.riccioli@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @jariccioli.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Waukesha man arrested after forcing boy into car over prank
