"I grabbed my drink and chucked it at his head": Michigan girls escape kidnapping by throwing hot coffee in suspect's face
Had it not been for some quick thinking on their feet, four young girls would have had to go through a frightening experience. According to Michigan police, the girls were able to fight off a man who had assaulted them over the weekend by throwing hot coffee in his face. The girls were aged from 11-years to 14-years and were leaving a gas station convenience store in Millington, Michigan when the incident took place.
According to police report, the suspect, identified as 22-year-old Bruce Hipkins, grabbed one of the girls by the hair and tried to kidnap her. Hipkins had been following the girls around that Friday evening and eventually went ahead and grabbed one of them "around the head and told her she was coming with him".
The department released a statement which read, "The other three girls kicked, hit, and threw their hot coffee on him. The suspect let the young girl go and grabbed another one of the girls by her hair. The suspect was again kicked and hit by the girls until he let her go and fled on foot". In an interview with Flint ABC affiliate WJRT, two of the girls, sisters 11-year-old Allison and 13-year-old Lauren Eickhoff recalled their horrific ordeal.
Allison revealed, "He said, 'You're coming with me.' And like, he grabbed my face. This cannot be happening; I thought it was a test at first, but then I'm like, 'This is real'". Her sister Lauren recalled how she screamed in fright but immediately jumped into action and shared that their father had told them to fight back whenever they felt as though they were in actual and real danger.
"I grabbed my drink and chucked it at his head. I tried, I punched him in the head," Lauren shared. "Seeing that your little sister was going to get taken is very scary," she continued. The girls were able to escape unharmed to a nearby hotel and called for help.
Later on, officers were able to track Hipkins and arrested him on charges of unlawful imprisonment, assault and battery and two counts of criminal sexual conduct, the police revealed. Hipkins is currently being held at the Tuscola County Jail and is on a $250,000 bond. It is not clear whether he was able to obtain an attorney yet.