A Georgia elementary school teacher was finishing the school day while the children were playing outside at recess when she looked up and saw two strange men walking with a female student.
Two men try to kidnap a girl and a teacher stands in their way
It was 2:15 on a Friday afternoon when Westside Elementary School kindergarten teacher Ginger Taylor witnessed two men walk into the playground full of children.
One of the men grabbed a 5-year-old girl and tried to walk away with her as Taylor chased them on the run.
She didn’t know what she was getting into, and it would earn her a standing ovation from the entire community.
The teacher approached the men and tried to stop them from taking the girl. The men pushed her away and were able to flee after putting the girl in a car.
However, Taylor was able to obtain license plate information and a description of the suspects’ car, and alerted the school resource officer.
But sheriff’s deputies stumbled upon the culprits ten minutes after receiving the first call, just before the men boarded a plane at Valdosta Regional Airport, bound for Mississippi.
The two men, identified as Michael McCormick, 33, and Scott Stapp, 36, were immediately taken into custody.
McCormick is said to be the child’s non-custodial parent and Stapp is said to be a friend of the kidnapping mastermind.
The Lowndes County Board of Education paid tribute to Ginger Taylor during a Board of Education meeting.
In a packed room, Taylor received a prolonged standing ovation from all in attendance, thanking her for preventing the abduction of a child.
“I’m honored to be recognized, but I’d like to give the glory to God, who stood by my side protecting me and this cute little girl,” Taylor told an overflow crowd, where there was barely a dry eye in the room.
