Man exposes himself to 3 girls in West Seattle

WEST SEATTLE -- He exposed himself to a group of girls on a school playground in West Seattle and then he disappeared.

Parents at West Seattle’s Holy Rosary School can’t believe it has happened so close to home.

"I've often wondered if this is more common because there are more predators today or if it seems more common because we're more aware,” Holy Rosary parent Amy Thorsen said.

And parents and school administrators are even more aware here after what happened Monday.

Police say the man parked his truck, opened the driver's side door and called out to three 9-year-old girls sitting on the edge of the playground.

"They walked over to the truck and, at some point when they got close enough, were able to see this suspect reclined in the driver's seat with no pants on and no underwear on,” Seattle police spokesman Jeff Kappel said.

The girls weren't touched or hurt and ran back inside the school and the man drove away.

"You hope that it doesn't happen in your neighborhood. You always hear about it, but at the same time I guess it tell us that you always have to be vigilant. You always have to be watching,” Holy Rosary parent Patrick Heidal said.

The suspect is described as a white man in his mid to late 20s with short dark hair and a heavy build.

Tuesday afternoon, the school sent out notices to parents alerting them to the incident and reminding them to talk with their kids.

Those we talked to say school officials handled the situation perfectly and kept parents informed.

"I think our school did absolutely the right thing. They let parents know right away that this had happened.  They let us know multiple ways so parents could react appropriately and I think our administration and our leadership here did all the right things,” Holy Rosary parent Sherri Chun said.

The police Sexual Assault Unit is investigating this case.

If the description of the SUV and or the suspect sounds familiar and you can help police find this man, you're asked to call 911.