Suddenly, a stranger grabbed her
The great-grandparents of 6-year-old girl describe how a man tried to abduct her from a restaurant.
By BILL VARIAN
Published May 5, 2005
TAMPA - Al and Clyde Levins were standing in line at a Chick-fil-A, their great-granddaughter between them, when the stranger intruded.
The Levinses needed to get Payton back home in time to go to a dance class at 6 p.m. But first things first: She and her brother wanted ice cream cones.
Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies say that's when Jose Antonio Hubbard walked up and grabbed the 6-year-old from behind.
"He said, "I'm taking her to her mother,"' said Clyde Levins, Payton's great-grandmother.
Mrs. Levins screamed.
Payton wriggled free, "like a little fish," said Mr. Levins.
A woman behind them yelled, "He tried to take that baby!" and dialed 911.
Deputies found Hubbard nearby a short while later.
By the time it was over, the Levinses had gotten a firsthand glimpse of the fear that has gripped parents around Tampa Bay after a string of highly publicized child abductions and slayings.
"I can't get the picture out of my head," said Mrs. Levins. "It's frightening to even think it can happen that quick."
Hubbard was being held without bail Wednesday at Orient Road Jail on a charge of kidnapping.
It is not his first time behind bars.
Records show he was released from jail only Monday after serving a month and a half for domestic battery on his mother.
Arrest records show Karen Santiago told police that her son had punched her on both sides of her face during an argument at her home in March.
Hubbard, 22, had been arrested on the same charge twice before, also in attacks on his mother.
Santiago said her son, bright as a young child, has struggled to control his anger since he was 13. He suffers from insomnia, sometimes staying awake for as long as three days, and he hadn't slept since his release from jail Monday.
But she said she is not sure how to explain what happened at the restaurant Tuesday.
"I know he didn't mean any harm to that little girl, but who would know that from what happened?" said Santiago, 43. "I thank God that nothing happened with that little girl and that nothing happened with my son."
Santiago said she has tried repeatedly and unsuccessfully for several years to get her son into a structured anger management program.
Court records indicate he has been treated at least once in a hospital for mental health conditions related to his temper, but Santiago said he has never been in a structured program.
Shortly before his most recent jail stint, Hubbard also was arrested and accused of trespassing at a Wal-Mart store, and he has previously faced charges of underage drinking and having an open alcohol container.
"I've been through hell and back, trust me," Santiago said. "At the same time, I definitely want help for my son because I know he needs it."
The incident comes at a time of anxiety for many parents around Tampa Bay.
First came the abduction and killing of 11-year-old Carlie Brucia in Sarasota last year.
Her death was followed this year by the kidnapping and killing of Jessica Lunsford, 9, in Homosassa and the slaying of Sarah Lunde, 13, in Ruskin.
Several other attempted kidnappings have also been reported.
The Levinses aren't sure what to make of what happened.
"I don't know what he was thinking," said Mrs. Levins, 77. "I know he was thinking wrong."
Mr. Levins, also 77, said he and his wife had driven from Land 'O Lakes to celebrate the ninth birthday of Payton's brother.
After the children finished their food, they romped in a play area inside the restaurant on N Dale Mabry Highway, near the Northdale Shopping Center and the children's home. The great-grandfather moved to a table closer to the play area, leaving his wife at another table.
He remembered watching a man come in wearing a long shirt that hung to his knees, with another white T-shirt draped over his shoulders.
"He didn't have anything to eat, nothing to drink," Mr. Levins said. "I eyeballed him when he came in, and he did me also."
The children asked for ice cream cones. So they waited in line again.
A Sheriff's Office report says Hubbard grabbed Payton from behind in a "reverse bear hug" and backed away. The great-grandfather yelled at him.
Using a technique Payton said she was taught in a Stranger Danger crime-prevention class, she raised her arms and slipped out of the man's grip.
"I got in his face," Mr. Levins said. "The first thing he said was, "Don't hit me.' "
Mr. Levins, a former railroad worker, said he thought about it. But he recently underwent surgery for carpal-tunnel syndrome and reinjured himself in a fall.
"Six months ago, I probably would have took him," he said.
Instead, he said, the man fled.
Deputies arrived within minutes on the ground, as well as in the air by helicopter.
They found Hubbard less than a mile away.
Payton never got to dance class. But she did get her ice cream.
Shaken, she couldn't finish it before it melted.
Researcher Cathy Wos contributed to this report. Bill Varian can be reached at (813) 226-3387.