Surveillance video shows the moment a transgender sex offender attempted to kidnap a young boy during recess at his elementary school.
Solomon Galligan, 33, was caught on camera walking onto a field at Black Forest Hills Elementary School in Aurora, Colorado around 2:20 pm April 22, according to an affidavit from the Aurora Police.
In the surveillance footage, Galligan is seen walking up to the children in the field as one potential victim ran when Galligan tried grabbing them but fell over a towel and lunged at another.
Parents were shown the footage for the first time at a meeting on Monday and their reaction was predictably shocked.
‘We hope that children embellish a little bit, but the footage there showed exactly what was stated. It was hard. It was really hard,’ Dante White said.
Surveillance video shows the moment a transgender sex offender attempted to kidnap a young boy during recess at his elementary school
Solomon Galligan, 33, was caught on camera walking onto a field at Black Forest Hills Elementary School in Aurora, Colorado around 2:20 pm April 22, according to an affidavit from the Aurora Police
White says the school has apologized for its failure in in the incident after he and other families watched the video. The next step is going to be vital.
‘We’ve prescribed a couple of items that we wanted done,’ said White. ‘We want an independent investigation of it, we want people put on administrative leave, we want people fired.’
Parents also asking for more safety training, more fencing around the school and more surveillance equipment, according to CBS News.
‘This is something that you fear as a parent. They’re in the custody of adults that are supposed to be trained professionals, and they weren’t. They categorically failed across the board, from the administration on site to the administration at Cherry Creek to the heads of security,’ White added.
‘We’re asking for accountability.’
The district has promised to make improvements and is continuing meeting with parents.
‘We are doing a thorough investigation. We’re looking at exactly what happened and what transpired afterwards as well. We take safety as a high priority,’ said Lauren Snell, a spokesperson for the school district said.
Witnesses informed police that children were yelling ‘stranger danger’ to alert adults that there was an unwanted person on school grounds.
He was caught on camera walking onto a field at Black Forest Hills Elementary School (pictured) in Aurora, Colorado
Galligan stopped what he was doing, left the vicinity, and headed east.
According to the complaint, the child the man pursued informed authorities the suspect had long dreadlocks and was dressed in a dark pantsuit and a blue hoodie.
The child reported he had white powder on his face and smelled of alcohol.
Immediately after the incident, a parent alerted school staff that a man matching the suspect’s description was spotted at a nearby Walgreens.
When law enforcement approached Galligan at the drugstore, he claimed to have been assaulted and asked to be taken to the hospital.
An officer ran a background check at the hospital and discovered that Galligan was a registered sex offender.
The suspect fled after students at the school yelled ‘stranger danger’ to alert teachers of his presence
Officers discovered Galligan was a registered sex offender and was previously convicted in 2011
He had previously been convicted in 2011 for nonconsensual grabbing, touching or groping another’s intimate body parts, per the affidavit.
Galligan was arrested for second-degree kidnapping. He is currently being held in the Arapahoe County jail under a $25,000 cash or surety bond.
Galligan has previously shared posts about his gender transition back in 2011.
‘So I’m starting my hormone shots and I really can’t wait I’m on my hormone pills I’ve been on them for almost 4 months,’ the post read.
‘I wake up all depressed and crying but in the end its gonna be totally worth it you know what I mean I’m really excited my measurements are already changing and I’m super thrilled.’