AN 11-year-old boy has escaped the clutches of a stranger who tried to lure him into his van in suburban Melbourne to pat a black labrador.

The boy was walking with his dog through parkland in Berwick at around 5.30pm last Tuesday (ADST).

Just before he entered a small park, a white van did a U-turn in front of him. The boy kept walking and sat at a bus stop.

The white van pulled up in front of the bus stop and a man got out and opened the sliding door.

He asked the boy if he wanted to pat the black Labrador dog that was inside the van.

The man stepped forward and tried to grab the boy's arm but the boy managed to step backwards and threw his basketball at the man and ran away.

The man was between 30 and 40 years old, had long straight brown hair, and was unshaven.

He was wearing sunglasses, white or yellow coloured thongs, a singlet and blue denim jeans.

The van is white, unwashed, rusty, possibly a 2004 model and had a sliding door on the driver's side.

Police would like to speak with two people walking their dog in the park prior to the incident who may have seen the van.

Originally published as Boy escapes abduction bid in Melbourne