A nine-year-old from Bridgton fought off a man, who attempted to abduct her Saturday afternoon on Kansas Road.

The Bridgton Police Department received a complaint of attempted child abduction at 2:30 p.m. The female victim reported that an older man — described as a white male, with white hair and slightly overweight — approached her in an attempt to get her into a vehicle. The girl was planning to join six friends to swim in a brook from a waterfront area just a short distance from the intersection of Lower Main Street and Kansas Road.

The victim was able to fend off the offender at which time the offender got back into the vehicle and left the area of Kansa Road traveling toward downtown Bridgton, according to Bridgton Chief of Police Kevin Schofield. The vehicle was described as a white panel van that resembles an ice cream truck. A “homemade” ice cream sign may have been attached to the van.

When the girls’ friends saw the man attempt to abduct her, they screamed for help. The girl suffered a scrape on her leg.

Chief Schofield commended the girl for “doing the right things” to avoid capture. The chief encouraged parents to remind their children how to respond if confronted by a stranger.

Anyone possessing any information on this case is asked to contact the Bridgton Police Department at 647-8815, ext. 200.