A 29-year-old Kentwood man was arrested after police say he assaulted a 66-year-old woman and attempted to kidnap a 14-year-old girl on the same afternoon in May.

John Moore was taken into custody on May 13 and lodged at the Kent County Correctional Facility. He faces charges of Assault and Battery and Unlawful Imprisonment, according to the Kentwood Police Department.

The First Assault

The first incident occurred between 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. on May 12 on Poinsettia Avenue SE, police said.

Mary Raab, 66, told News 8 she was planting flowers near her mailbox when Moore pulled up in his car. He told her his brother had died and that he was struggling with grief, Raab said.

"He got out and said, 'I have had this very traumatic incident happen to me, my brother passed away and I am in deep grief and I do not know how to deal with it,'" Raab said. "I am thinking, well this is very weird."

Moore then asked if he could use her restroom and wash his hands. Raab said no and directed him to a nearby gas station.

When she went to shake his hand, Moore put his arms around her and tried to kiss her, Raab said.

"I went to shake his hand and then he put his arms around me and went to kiss me on the mouth, and I turned my head away and he planted his lips between my jawbone and my neck," Raab said. "It is violating somebody's space, why do you think you have the right to do that?"

Raab said she managed to break from his embrace and keep him from entering her home.

The Attempted Kidnapping

Later that same evening, around 6:40 p.m., Kentwood police responded to the 1800 block of Rondo Street east of Kalamazoo Avenue for a report of an attempted kidnapping, according to police records.

A 14-year-old girl told officers she was walking home from school when Moore stopped his vehicle next to the sidewalk and lunged toward her, police said. Home surveillance video reviewed by investigators captured the encounter.

The teen fought back and Moore sustained minor injuries before returning to his car and fleeing the scene, according to the Kentwood Police Department.

"That victim absolutely saved her own life that day, she did amazing things and fought hard and made that suspect jump back in the car and take off," Capt. Tim Wierenga with the Kentwood Police Department told News 8.

Wierenga said Moore was "just looking for a victim" and that age did not matter to him.

A History of Similar Behavior

This is not Moore's first encounter with the criminal justice system. Less than a year ago, Moore was sentenced to jail time and probation for accosting women at Meijer stores, according to WOODTV.

In 2023, surveillance footage from a Clyde Park Meijer showed Moore crouching behind a woman in the store's common area and recording an upskirt video of her with his phone, the station reported. A separate incident at a Wyoming Meijer involved Moore allegedly peering into a women's bathroom stall, according to prior reporting.

Moore also allegedly used a ruse at the Alpine Avenue Meijer, telling female customers they had a spider on their back before grabbing their buttocks. Three women reported the incidents, according to WOODTV.

Police Ask for Tips

Investigators say they identified Moore using witness statements and surveillance video from the area. He was arrested within 24 hours of the May 12 incidents.

The Kentwood Police Department is asking anyone who witnessed suspicious activity in the area or who may be aware of similar unreported incidents to contact them at (616) 656-6580. Anonymous tips can also be submitted through Silent Observer at (616) 774-2345 or online at Silent Observer.

Raab said she is grateful the situation did not escalate further.

"I think he chose me because he saw me as a woman alone, he was definitely testing me to see how vulnerable I was and luckily I was calm enough and level-headed enough to make him go away without having anything devastating and dramatic happen," Raab said.