EDMONTON -- A 53-year-old man is charged after a nine-year-old girl fought off a culprit who tried to put a poison cloth over her face.

The girl kicked the would-be abductor after he tried placing a cloth with a noxious substance over her face about 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 28. She screamed and ran from the area before the man fled in a vehicle.

The girl then gave police detailed descriptions of the vehicle and the accused.

The descriptions were fanned out to school administrators. A sharp-eyed school employee contacted police after spotting a suspicious vehicle circling a school the next day.

Officers tracked the vehicle before a man was arrested.

"This incident was a prime example of how the public played a key role in helping police to locate and arrest a potentially dangerous predator," Staff Sgt. Rob Paton said.

Rodrigo Tavares, 53, is charged with kidnapping and administering a noxious substance.