Altoona police are searching for a man who tried to kidnap a 15-year-old girl this week.

Police said the teenager was walking through the Sixth Avenue alley on her way to school when a man grabbed her from behind. The girl fought the man off and escaped.

The teen told police she had seen the man following her in a white van. The man is about 6 feet 1 inch tall with a gray mustache and bad teeth. He was last seen wearing a white hat and white overalls with paint on them.

Anyone with information is asked to call police.