Michigan man accused of trying to 2 kidnap two girls allegedly flipped off their families in court: reports

A Michigan man who tried to abduct two girls flipped off at their families while in court — as he backtracked on a plea deal over the charges, according to reports.Endi Bala, 25, appeared in a Mount Clemens courthouse over the August 2024 attempted kidnapping – and it was expected he would plead no contest before suddenly having a change of heart, the Macomb Daily reported.Bala, who is originally from Albania and moved to the US when he was a teen, allegedly tried to snatch Olivia and Alexis, who were 7 and 15 at the time, within a 45 minute period – and faces charges of kidnapping and child enticement. He had reportedly agreed to a plea – but changed his mind before stepping foot in the courtroom.“You don’t want to enter a plea today?” Matthew Sabaugh, the presiding judge, asked.“No,” Bala replied, shaking his head.“The plan was to enter into the pleas today, but unfortunately after our conference in chambers, he has changed his mind for the time being,” Samuel Bennett, his attorney, said, trying to explain Bala’s decision.Bala was disruptive throughout the court hearing – and at one point, his lawyer said, “Shut your mouth,” WDIV reported.“You are not going to communicate with anyone in the gallery, sir,” Sabaugh snapped.But when Bala was being escorted out of the courtroom, he allegedly made a crude gesture at the girls’ families. “Unbelievable,” an apoplectic Coryne Childers, Olivia’s mom, said.“How is it OK for him to turn and flick us off, smile at us, yet if we say one thing, we’re threatened, we’re going to get kicked out of court? How is that OK? “You’re the one that did this … but you can sit there, smile at us, flick us off, and that’s OK?”Bala also allegedly made a sarcastic quip to Alecia Swejkowski – Olivia’s aunt – as she told the court his next hearing date clashes with her son’s birthday.“Happy birthday to your son,” he said.Bala faces a maximum of life in prison after being ...