A man who grabbed an 8-year-old boy outside an Ocean Beach business and was stopped by the boy’s father and others was sentenced May 8 to two years in jail.

Christopher Aaron Higginbotham, 39, told San Diego Superior Court Judge Dwayne Moring he thought the boy was his own son during the March 22 incident on Newport Avenue at 7:30 p.m. in front of the OB Quik Mart.

“It was mistaken identity,” said Higginbotham.

Higginbotham, of Ocean Beach, pleaded guilty to false imprisonment on April 9, and attempted kidnapping was dropped.

Prison was ruled out, and Higginbotham’s projected release date was set for March 27, 2025, after he received 85 days of credit.

The prosecutor told the judge Higginbotham’s son and the victim in this case look differently and “only (Higginbotham) knows what he was thinking that day.”

The 8-year-old’s father said Higginbotham walked back and forth in front of the business twice before he grabbed his son, but he didn’t get very far before he and others stopped him. The incident was caught on videotape and played on local newscasts.

Higginbotham claimed someone gave him LSD in a soft drink before the incident, according to the probation report that was released Monday.

“I thought I saw my son, so I went to pick him up. I have a 12-year-old son who lives in Vista. Once I picked the boy up, I got tackled and realized that it was not my son,” said Higginbotham.

“I was convinced he was my son when I first saw him, but I was tripping on acid. I am sorry if I scared the kid. It was not my intention to hurt anybody. People held me there until the officers showed up,” said Higginbotham.

Higginbotham said he had last seen his son around Christmas and the son lives with his ex-wife, who attended the sentencing and spoke on his behalf.

Higginbotham was fined $700 and remains in the South Bay Detention Facility.