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PD: Middletown woman sprays kidnapper with perfume, gets away

Suspect still at large
Posted at 11:37 AM, Jun 15, 2016
and last updated 2016-06-15 18:07:45-04

MIDDLETOWN, Ohio -- A woman was able to avoid an attempted kidnapping Tuesday when she sprayed a man in the face with perfume and kicked him out of her vehicle, according to police.

Joyce Kenney was leaving her home Tuesday afternoon when a man surprised her, forced her into her vehicle and told her to drive him.

Kenney told police she asked the man not to hurt her when she noticed a bottle of perfume in the side of her door. As she approached a turning lane at Breiel and Central, she began spraying the man in the face. When he opened his door, she managed to kick him out of her car, and he ran north on Breiel Blvd.

"I didn't have any weapon," Kenney said. "I had no way to protect myself so I just thought oh God that burns if it gets in your eyes. I'm thinking this and then I just reached up and grabbed it and sprayed it."

Police described the man as about 5’8’’ with a skinny build. He has a goatee or patch on his chin, and he was wearing a jean jacket with grey jeans that had holes in them. He was also wearing some kind of ski mask and gardening gloves at the time of the incident. 

Kenney stated the individual did not show her a weapon, but she was frightened by the way he handled her.

Police asked that anyone who knows the man's whereabouts call them.

WCPO is following this story and will update with information as it becomes available.