Crime & Public Safety
Man arrested after surveillance shows alleged lewd conduct toward chld inside Dollar Tree in Miami
Miami police say a 32-year-old man was arrested after surveillance footage allegedly showed him placing his face near a 9-year-old girl’s buttocks inside a Dollar Tree near Little Havana on Flagler Street. The incident was reported when a store manager reviewed video and contacted authorities, according to the police report. Surveillance video reviewed by investigators reportedly shows the man walking down an aisle with a shopping cart as the chld entered alone, then closing distance, pausing to scan the area, and positioning his face near the chld’s lower back before lifting his upper body as if inhaling. The girl then grabbed a poster and walked away; police say the footage shows the man moving closer again and leaning his pelvic area toward her but not making contact as she left the aisle. The girl told investigators her mother had brought her to the store for school project materials and later said the man touched her arm and nudged her shoulder area, then smelled her, describing the sensation as “air on her lower back,” according to the report. Officers from the Miami Police Department’s Little Havana Problem Solving Team detained the man after the manager contacted police. After being read his Miranda rights, the suspect told investigators he had been to a bicycle repair shop in Hialeah and later acknowledged seeing the girl; he told police he “did not intend to cause any harm” and attributed his actions to Canna use, the report states. Jail records show he faces one count of lewd and lascivious conduct on a chld younger than 16. In Miami-Dade bond court, a judge set bond at $2,500, ordered him to stay away from the victim and the store, placed him on house arrest and imposed a nightly curfew, per the court action documented in the report. All individuals accused of a crime are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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All individuals mentioned in criminal allegations are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.