I can't say that I blame people for getting worked up when they hear reports of attempted kidnappings. I'm a parent of four kids, and that stuff makes my blood boil. But before we get whipped up into an anxious frenzy, let's make sure there's something to get worked up about first.

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That's the advice the Bangor PD issued on its Facebook Page this week, after looking into one such claim.

The account of the "attempted abduction" was shared far and wide on social media and caught the attention of the police.

"A recent post--being shared widely--has indicated that an attempted abduction of a child occurred at our local Christmas Tree Shop here in Bangor. ..After being notified of this post, our inquisitive and slightly truculent Lieutenant of Detectives came to me to diligently search our files for any such report. Even together, after coffee, neither one of us could come up with a report that even mildly hinted at any type of abduction attempt."

The fact that the authorities were never notified was certainly a red flag for those who make a living investigating crimes. So they did some digging and found out that the incident in question wasn't even reported to store management.

"The manager--Ms. Stephanie--at the Bangor Christmas Tree Shop has now confirmed that nothing happened there yesterday, or the day before, or the day before that. We then inquired about today. She continued to confirm that there have been no abduction attempts at the Bangor Christmas Tree Shop."

You can read the entire account below.

The takeaway here; take everything you read online with a grain of salt and a healthy heap of skepticism. I realize that's something that's easier said than done sometimes because of how convincing some of the stories can sound.

Bottom line: if you are a victim or a witness of a crime, it's best to report it to the authorities or persons in charge rather than take your case online.

And if you come across a post like this, feel free to recommend to the person posting it to do the same.

We, as a world, as parents, as people are pretty stressed out right now if you hadn't noticed.

Let's not fan the flames of things that will freak us out unless they've been verified and there's a reason to panic.

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