Jonathan Williams was arrested Monday for allegedly exposing himself to a Boy Scout while sitting in a vehicle, Holly Hills police announced.
Williams, 58, was charged with lewd and lascivious exhibition of a minor and violation of probation. He is being held on $30,000 bond in a Volusia County jail. It is unclear if he has acquired the services of an attorney.
According to Holly Hills police, the alleged incident occurred on November 2 outside an Ace Hardware store. A Boy Scout troop leader told police that they saw Williams park a church van, quickly go inside the store, then return to his van where he allegedly stared at the boys for around 10 minutes as they collected donations.
Williams allegedly called over one of the boys and handed him some money. The transaction would have been innocent if Williams hadn’t purportedly exposed his “entire genital area” when he opened the van door to give the boy the money, the arrest report said.
Police reviewed video surveillance from the parking lot and it reportedly shows Williams “actively masturbating for many minutes” before he called the boy to come and take his donation, according to the report.
Using the surveillance footage, police were able to track the vehicle to the Free Spirit Evangelistic Outreach Church in Daytona Beach. A church worker confirmed to police that the van belongs to the church and that Williams is its driver.
When questioned by police on Monday, he reportedly admitted to buying keys at the hardware store and said he waited outside the store afterwards because he was unable to start the van. When asked why he had exposed himself, Williams purportedly said he had “an itch” which led him to examine his groin area for a rash.
Police said he eventually confessed to masturbating, saying that he “fell off the wagon” and got excited from watching the Boy Scout troop. Records show that Williams is a registered sex offender who has been on probation since a lewd molestation conviction in 1996. He isn’t allowed to have unsupervised contact with children.
Another case of lewd and lascivious battery by an adult on a child was reported last month. A Disney Cruise Line employee went on trial for allegedly touching a 10-year-old boy aboard a Disney ship in April.
Oliver Lovatt, 25, was arrested in May and charged with lewd and lascivious battery on a child. He was ordered held without bond while awaiting trial.
According to Miami-Dade police, Lovatt worked aboard the Disney Magic as an entertainer for kids aged 3 to 12. He is accused of fondling a child’s genitals while the ship was out at sea. Lovatt reportedly blindfolded the victim and spun him around as part of a game before touching him.
The charges against Lovatt were dropped and he was released Monday after prosecutors found inconsistencies in the victim’s story.
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Source: 11.6.19 Sex offender in church van exposed himself to scout, police say.pdf
