AN elderly man has sat down next to a mum and her eight-year-old daughter at a US supermarket - then offered the woman money in exchange for the girl.

An 81-year-old man sat down on a bench next to the pair at Walmart in Florida, then began grabbing the girl’s arm and kissing her wrist, according to Port Orange Police.

The woman, Tracey Nigh, was then offered money on three occasions - believed to be about $278,000 - in exchange for her daughter.

The mother grabbed her daughter and immediately left the store before calling police.

AP reports that Hellmuth Kolb of Port Orange was arrested on charges of false imprisonment of a child under the age of 13 and battery, and remanded in custody.

It is understood the exchange was caught on camera and Mr Kolb was identified from credit card transaction and social media, after another woman described a similar experience.

The girl’s mother reportedly told police that she became “extremely uncomfortable” as Kolb began asking her if she was married and about her daughter.