Man who tried to abduct child in Aldi store in Heywood jailed

Sergejus Paskevicius was described as a "danger to society" by police

A "dangerous" man who tried to abduct a child at a supermarket has been jailed.

Sergejus Paskevicius grabbed the child while their mother was at the till at Aldi in Heywood on 23 July 2022 and tried to flee the store, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said.

But the victim's brother managed to pull his sibling out of Paskevicius's arms, the force said.

Paskevicius, 61, of no fixed address, was jailed for three years and two months.

He was sentenced after pleading guilty at Manchester's Minshull Street Crown Court to taking a child, removing them from a person having lawful control.

GMP said Paskevicius started talking to two children at the store on Bradshaw Street while their mother was at the till at about 18:00 BST.

'Worst nightmare'

Seconds later, the victim's mother saw him carrying her youngest child.

GMP said the terrifying ordeal was made even worse as the eldest child tried to pull his brother out of Paskevicius's arms.

The eldest child managed to carry his brother back towards their mother with Paskevicius walking out of the shop pretending to act like nothing happened, police said.

He was later identified from an appeal on social media after the incident was caught on CCTV.

Det Sgt Andrew Whitehill said: "Paskevicius was a danger to society for his shocking actions but thankfully his intentions didn't result in anything more serious than a sinister move to abduct a child from their parent.

"It is arguably every parent's worst nightmare and thanks to the quick actions of everyone involved, including the public, we were able to arrest the person responsible."

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