By Jim Hannah
The Cincinnati Enquirer

NEWPORT - Police have arrested a man they say attacked a 13-year-old girl at Newport on the Levee.

Robert Ladriere, 40, of Covington, was arraigned Tuesday on one count of criminal attempt to commit kidnapping. He was being held at the Campbell County jail in lieu of a $50,000 bond. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday in Campbell District Court.

On May 1, the teen was coming out of a restroom stall when a man grabbed her by the arm and throat and tried to push her back into the stall, police said.

She fought back and was able to escape, police said. Her neck was bruised, but she did not need medical attention.

The man was last seen leaving the Levee and walking toward Third Street. Detective used pictures from security cameras at the Levee to help identify a suspect. Ladriere was arrested Friday night in Covington on a warrant after the girl identified him in a photo lineup as the man who accosted her.

Newport police said Ladriere had been a drifter for the past year, living with friends and in homeless shelters. He lost his apartment last year in a fire. Police said Ladriere had been to the Levee in the past to apply for jobs.

E-mail jhannah@enquirer.com