Gainesville Police is searching for a man who was seen masturbating at a public library downtown Wednesday afternoon.
The man was at the Alachua County Headquarters Library, located at 401 E. University Ave., at about 3:30 p.m., wrote GPD spokesperson Officer Ben Tobias in an email. A witness told police the man was looking through a hole in a book at two women sitting at a nearby desk while holding his penis in the other hand and masturbating, Tobias said.
After he realized he had been seen by a witness, the man left. The witness told police the man was a black male and described him as about 6 feet tall and 30 to 50 years old with a “pudgy” stomach. The witness also said the man had short hair, no facial hair and was wearing a white T-shirt, jean shorts and black shoes, Tobias said.
Officers are checking local contact records and sexual offenders in the area in an attempt to identify the subject based on his description. GPD has also increased patrol at the library, Tobias said.
Investigators are asking anyone with information regarding the incident or possible suspect to call GPD at 352-955-1818 or Crime Stoppers at 352-372-STOP.
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