SPANAWAY, Wash. — A disturbing incident out of Pierce County, after an adult male exposed himself to a 16-year-old girl who was walking home from school.
He’s still at large. However, the victim recently spoke with detectives who were able to put together a composite sketch of that suspect, accused of lewd conduct after exposing himself while in his car less than a mile away from Cedarcrest Middle School.
This happened back on February 7. Now, law enforcement is asking for help from the community to identify this individual.
He’s described as a white male in his early 20s with dirty blond hair. He was driving a blue four-door sedan at the time of the incident. Authorities affirm that apprehending this suspect is a priority for Pierce County Law Enforcement.
“We’ve got somebody out there prowling on our children with inappropriate behavior. And, likely isn’t the only case. It might not be isolated to just this case. So, we want to get this suspect off the streets,” says Deputy Carly Cappetto.
She confirms the community has helped report tips that could help lead to an arrest, and anyone with additional information about either the suspect or his vehicle is urged to reach out to police.
Detectives are particularly interested in video surveillance footage from the block of 18800 8th Avenue East around 3 p.m. on Friday, February 7th.
Before the victim had come forward to speak with detectives, residents were unaware of the incident. Hearing about it came as a shock, prompting concern and anger from the surrounding community.
“Kinda makes me upset. I hope they find out who he is so they can handle it,” says neighbor Mark Krambule.
He’s anxious for his daughter’s sake. He’s lived in this neighborhood for most of his life, but doesn’t remember hearing of anything like this. Krambule says he doesn’t currently have any cameras facing the street, but says that’s about to change.
Meanwhile, Andre Skeete has a niece who lives nearby and is equally appalled. He had no prior knowledge of the lewd conduct. After hearing the news, he wants to make sure fellow residents are aware.
“It’s kind of like security of the neighborhood. You pretty much need to talk to everybody,” Skeete says. “So, I’m probably going to go to some doors and let people know. ‘Cause I didn’t even know about it until you came up and told me about it.”
For their part, law enforcement wants to remind anyone who’s experienced something like this that they shouldn’t be afraid to speak up and report it to police.
“If this has happened to other victims out there, we do ask that they come forward and that they’re not scared to report something like this,” urged Deputy Cappetto.
She also stresses that parents can play a pivotal role, talking with their kids and communicating the dangers of these scenarios.
As for residents, they tell me they’ll be on the lookout for anything suspicious, but this was certainly a wake-up call for many around the area.
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