In this rural stretch of Berks County, neighbors say this is not the kind of thing that's ever happened around here before. And they say they hope this case is solved quickly, so it never happens again.
Jeff Moyer, who lives on the 100 block of DeTurk Road in Oley Township, says he felt something was wrong from the moment he saw the vehicle involved.
"The van went by extremely slow, which is kind of rare around here," said Jeff.
From there the vehicle pulled up in front of his neighbor's house, where several young children were playing in the yard unsupervised.
"Pulled up, stopped on the dirt road, and made a motion for the children to come toward the van," said Pennsylvania State Trooper David Boehm.
The children reportedly started walking toward the van. But a woman inside the house saw what was happening and started yelling, ordering the children inside.
The vehicle sped away.
Jeff and his wife, Joyce, who live across the street, both witnessed the whole thing happen this past weekend. They say they still feel rattled by what they saw.
"We allow our children to walk with the dogs and everything down the road," said Joyce. "I don't think we will anymore, because you never know."
The Moyers did not get a good look at the man behind the wheel, but they describe the vehicle as a white, late-80's model Ford van with a lot of bumper stickers.
The case is being handled by the Pennsylvania State Police in Reading, and investigators say the case is being given a high priority.
"Two of our criminal investigators were in the area all day today, trying to gather more information to identify the van," said Boehm.
Anyone with any information about this case is asked to call the Pennsylvania State Police barracks in Reading, Pa.
