He offered clothes, money and even a new Cadillac, according to a 13-year-old boy who identified himself Thursday as one of the victims. The Tribune is not publishing the boy's name to protect his identity as a juvenile victim.

Standing with his mother in the parking lot Thursday evening, the teen said he had been riding a bicycle around the lot about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday when a friend pointed to a man who was calling out his name.

"I went over to him and asked, 'How do you know my name?' because I'd never seen him before," the boy said. "He looked at me and said, 'You're gonna get a new Cadillac if you follow me.' I told him I wasn't going anywhere with him."

The man touched his back, he said, and then offered a girl $20 to go with him.

When the youngsters refused, the man grabbed their arms and tried to drag them, deputies said. They all squirmed away. The incident caught the attention of a private security officer who patrols the complex, and he detained Lieberman until deputies arrived and arrested him.

"They wouldn't go with him," sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said, "They wouldn't comply. He tried to drag them, but all the kids got away from him. One even kicked him."

The victim said the stranger climbed into a resident's car before being threatened and forced out by the owner. Another adult then came out of an apartment and held the man against another car until the security officer arrived, the boy said.

Deputies charged Lieberman with seven counts of kidnapping a child younger than 13, six counts of luring or enticing a child and one count of lewd or lascivious molestation because he massaged one child's back during the incident, deputies said.

Lieberman has no prior arrests on similar charges, Carter said. He is not on the state's registered sex offender list.

Hillsborough County court records show that Lieberman, a former car salesman in Clearwater who is unemployed, was arrested in January at Tampa International Airport and charged with possession of cocaine and marijuana. He has entered a not guilty plea to those charges. The case is pending.

Thursday's arrest shocked his family, who said Lieberman, a former family man who raised two children of his own, has never exhibited this type of behavior.

"He never had any type of violent behavior at all," said Lieberman's sister-in-law, Kathy Lieberman, 62, of Apollo Beach.

"When he is on his medication and not using drugs, and working, he is one of most gentle and kind individuals you would ever know in your life," she said. "He's an extremely pleasant, kind and nice individual."

The victim's mother said she was relieved to know Lieberman had been caught, but she was disturbed that the apartment complex management had not informed residents about the incident.

"They caught him, yes, but it would make parents more aware if they had put notes on the doors," she said. "He could get out and do this again."

Sitting on the steps of her building Thursday afternoon watching her 3-year-old and 1-year-old nephews playing, Candice Cowen, 24, said she had not heard about the attempted abductions the day before and was shocked at the news.

"In this complex, a lot of children run around here," she said. "That worries me."

Cowen is the mother of a 4-year-old girl who was off at school. She said she always keeps a close eye on her daughter and nephews when they play on the steps or in the apartment's playground. "You can't go off and let your kids play alone," Cowen said.

Jessie Williams and his girlfriend, Kim Hunt, both 21, said that when they first moved into the complex two years ago, there was a crime problem, but it is much safer now.

A security gate is usually closed and a private security company patrols the area, he said.

Hunt said she sees children running around the apartment complex all the time. Sometimes, their parents watch them. Sometimes, they do not. She said it never occurred to her the children might not be safe.

Dee Lawrence said she has two daughters, ages 7 and 10. The thought of an attempted abduction frightened her even though her daughters generally go to their grandmother's house to play outside. Even there, Lawrence said, they never play alone.

"I don't let them out of my sight for nothing," she said. "That's just the way I am."

Reporter Thomas W. Krause contributed to this report. Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 865-1504. Reporter Mike Wells can be reached at (813) 657-4534.