Stranger attacks 9-year-old to steal bike, CA cops say. Then, bystanders step in
A woman was arrested after California police say community members thwarted her attempt to steal a 9-year-old child’s bicycle.
Police said they responded to an apartment complex after getting a report of “a woman hitting a young boy and attempting to steal his bicycle,” the afternoon of July 30, according to a Novato Police Department Facebook post.
Officers later determined the woman, identified as Khadija Sultan, 29, did not know the child when “she hit him and took his bicycle,” police said.
As officers made their way, community members stopped Sultan from attacking the child further by restraining her, police said.
Upon arriving, police said their officers detained Sultan.
Novato Fire District rescuers medically assessed the child, who had minor injuries, and his parents told police they planned to take him to a hospital.
“While we do not typically encourage community members to become physically involved with in-progress crimes for safety reasons; however, we thank and commend our neighbors who intervened to protect this young child,” police said.
Sultan was arrested on counts of robbery and child abuse, police said.
Novato is about a 30-mile drive north from San Francisco.
This story was originally published August 1, 2025 at 1:12 PM with the headline "Stranger attacks 9-year-old to steal bike, CA cops say. Then, bystanders step in."
