YOUNGSVILLE, N.C. (WNCN) – Jennifer Parker can’t help think what if she hadn’t been keeping a watchful eye over children when a convicted sex offender approached them.
Parker said last month, she stopped a man from abducting her 15-year-old daughter outside their Youngsville home.
“He just gave me like, a devil look,” said Parker.
Parker said on January 19, she was being her usual protective self and stood by the front door as her two daughters took out the family dogs for an evening walk.
“I was standing here right in front of the door with the door open. My oldest daughter comes in the door running,” said Parker.
Her 15-year-old daughter also came running to the porch – but she wasn’t alone.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office said 51-year-old William Mims had the teen by the arm.
“He had my daughter’s arm and I had to snatch her away from him,” said Parker. “I think my mom instincts kicked in. So I yanked her in the house and he gave me the dirtiest look. My first instinct was the lock the door. I couldn’t get it locked so I sat against it.”
Mims was later arrested and charged with child abduction, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office said.
According to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, Mims registered as a sex offender in 2006 after serving six years in prison for a 1999 kidnapping and sexual assault case involving a victim over the age of 18.
Parker said in the year that her family lived on Cureton Drive, she’d frequently see Mims in the neighborhood.
However, she had no idea he was a convicted sex offender.
She said the ordeal is an important reminder for parents.
“I would tell them to protect their kids and just watch out because you never know who is around you at that time,” said Parker.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office said Mims stayed from time to time on Cureton Drive but was not registered as a sex offender in Franklin County.
Once they are released from prison, sex offenders must register in the county where they live.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office said Mims was registered at a home in Wake Forest.
The Wake County Sheriff’s Office said they verified Mims was staying at the Wake Forest address on Nov. 13, 2019.
A deputy went to check again on Jan. 22.
However, Mims was behind bars.
His parents confirmed he had been staying at the address, according to the Wake County Sheriff’s Office.
Mim is due back in court later this month.
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