The boys, aged nine and 11, were going home for lunch from Pinewood Elementary at about 1 p.m. when the van stopped and the driver with a shaven head called out to them to get into the vehicle.

"The boys did not know the man," said Const. Sharlene Brooks of the Delta police.

"They did everything right. They were walking home together, and they said, 'No, we're not getting in' and ran away."

The boys ran home and told their mom, who called the school and police.

The man continued south on Sundwood Drive. He did not get out of the van or try to pursue the boys.

The boys were "quite matter of fact," said Brooks. "They are doing very well."

The van is an older Chevy, dark red, and missing the front bumper. It had a wooden ladder on the roof and the rear window on the driver's side was covered with a garbage bag.

The driver is Caucasian with a shaven head, pointed goatee and a thin moustache. He was wearing blue-tinted sunglasses and a silver chain with a dollar-sign pendant. He has a tattoo of a tiger with a snake wrapped around its paw on his left shoulder.

Pinewood Elementary sent out notices to parents describing the encounter, and police said they are looking for the vehicle.

chchan@png.canwest.com

© The Vancouver Province 2007