Police: Pedophile stole school bus, attempted to pick up kids

John Bacon | USA TODAY

A registered sex offender is facing charges of theft and attempted child kidnapping after authorities in Utah say he stole school bus and drove around trying to pick up children.

Patrick Frederickson, 30, is accused of walking away from his landscaping job, stealing an SUV and driving around until he found a parked school bus. He stole that and began driving a route based on a list of names and addresses he found on the bus, authorities said.

"He did stop at one residence and tried to pick up a young child, the father intercepted that and he (Frederickson) went on down the road at which time he met a person and asked for another address," Emery County Sheriff's Lt. Gayle Jensen told Fox13. "She was very suspicious about that so she called that in and at that point we responded to that area and were able to bring this to a conclusion."

Frederickson was arrested Monday and charged with two counts of theft of a vehicle, attempted child kidnapping and damaging a jail. Fox13 reports that after Fredricksen was booked he broke a water pipe, flooding his cell and nearby offices.

Fredricksen was placed on the state's Sex Offender Registry after pleading guilty to unlawful sexual activity with a minor in 2004.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports that in 2006, Fredericksen apparently stole a badge and posed as a firefighter. He "not only listened to a police scanner and raced to accident scenes, he also stole firefighting equipment and used his faked status to lease an apartment and open lines of credit," the Tribune said.