KATY, Texas — A Katy family wants parents to talk to their kids about safety after it appears their 13-year-old son was followed by a car as he rode his bike home. Some of the incident was captured on surveillance video.
“Oh my gosh, it was just scary,” Susie Casino said.
Early Sunday afternoon, her son, Daniel Casino, was riding his bike to a nearby restaurant with friends when he spotted what appeared to be a black Scion. It stood out because it was parked across three parking spots.
After leaving with his friends, Daniel noticed the car again, this time parked outside a home where they were playing.
Then, as he rode home alone, he said the car began to follow him.
“I kept on turning around and I realized the car was slowly right behind me,” Daniel said. “I was just thinking, like, I need to go to the closest friend's house and just stay there.”
The video shows Daniel riding up to his friend’s home, which was closer than his own, then running to the front door. When no one answered, he went through a back gate to hide and call for help. A few seconds later, the car was seen pulling around the cul-de-sac and parking for several seconds before driving away.
“He was nervous, and I just told him to stay there,” Casino said she told her son. “Don’t leave, don’t ride your bike home. I will pick you up or dad will pick you up.”
The family filed a report with the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office and then Casino shared the video on social media.
“I just wanted to make sure that everybody knows. That every family is aware,” she said.
Meanwhile, Daniel won’t be riding his bike too far from home anytime soon.
“That’s what they look forward to on the weekends -- is riding bikes, playing with their friends, having their freedom. And unfortunately, because of this incident, all of that stuff has to come to a halt now,” Casino said.