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SOUTH SALT LAKE — A registered sex offender was charged Wednesday with trying to lure a young girl from a playground into his car.
Travis James Groce, 43, of Taylorsville, is charged in 3rd District Court with attempted child kidnapping, a first-degree felony, and being a sex offender in a protected area, a class A misdemeanor.
On Feb. 13, a father arrived home from work and went to the playground at his South Salt Lake apartment complex to say hello to his daughter who was playing with a 3-year-old girl. That's when he saw Groce parked near the playground with the driver's side door open, according to charging documents.
"Groce was waving to (the 3-year-old girl) with his hand extended, palm facing up and curling his fingers toward him multiple times, as if saying 'come here' and (the girl) was actively moving toward the vehicle," the charges state.
The father said he grabbed the young girl and called to his wife to find the girl's parents.
"Groce closed the door on his vehicle and left the area in a rushed manner, maneuvering around (the man's) vehicle and driving at a high rate of speed," according to the charges, which also say he "fled the scene driving erratically."
Witnesses attempted to follow Groce and were able to get a license plate number from his car.
The young girl told police that Groce "was saying, 'Niña ven' ('Come here, girl' in Spanish). (She) showed that Groce was waving to her the same way that (the man) and (his daughter) explained," the charges allege.
Prosecutors also say that before he was arrested, Groce told his wife "that the police would be coming for him."
Groce was convicted of lewdness involving a child in 2021, according to court records. He was sentenced to two years of probation and ordered to register as a sex offender in Utah.
