Gainesville police arrested a man Thursday on suspicion of voyeurism involving a minor after sneaking into a women’s restroom to meet a woman for sex.
A young girl over the age of 12 but under 18 described entering a Gainesville public business women’s restroom stall July 18, catching a glimpse of a man’s bare feet on the other side of the divider. She realized the feet, belonging to 55-year-old Malcolm Andrews, were beside a pile of neatly folded clothes, and she looked up to find a pair of eyes “peeking” at her as she used the bathroom, according to the arrest report.
After hearing multiple screams, the girl’s boyfriend and an employee burst into the restroom to find Andrews, completely naked, attempting to forcibly enter the girl’s stall. They pushed Andrews out of the room, and three additional witnesses saw him flee the scene without clothes before he was apprehended by police and identified by the employee in a showup, according to the arrest report.
The girl said she did not recognize Andrews and had no previous contact with him prior to the incident.
An officer on scene recalled that Andrews “spontaneously stated” he had arranged to have sex with a woman at the location and believed the girl to be who he was meeting, later invoking his right to remain silent. An unopened condom was found among his belongings, according to the arrest report.
Andrews was charged with voyeurism, indecent exposure and attempted sexual assault of a victim over 12 years of age but under 18.
His prior charges include aggravated assault with a weapon, property damage under $200, disorderly conduct, resisting an officer without violence and trespassing. Andrews was also arrested as an out-of-state fugitive for a parole violation in 2018.
One witness declined to comment, and the rest could not be reached in time for publication.
Contact Rylan DiGiacomo-Rapp at rdigiacomo-rapp@alligator.org. Follow her on X @rylan_digirapp.
Rylan DiGiacomo-Rapp is a third year journalism and environmental science major and the Fall 2024 Enterprise Environmental Reporter. Outside of the newsroom, you can usually find her haunting local music venues.
