Escondido police have arrested a registered sex offender accused of inappropriately touching himself in front of children at a public library.
According to police, Kenneth Robert Dunford II, 52, visited the Escondido Public Library around 11:30 a.m. on June 22 and allegedly began following a mother and her two young children.
The mother told police Dunford appeared to be following her and her kids up and down the aisles. When she tried to move away, he continued to follow the family.
He then allegedly moved in closer, just a few feet away, and began touching himself inappropriately over his clothing while winking at the young children, police said.
The mother grabbed her kids and moved away again, and the man then fled the library.
The mother was at first reluctant to report the incident to police, but eventually did so on Saturday.
The Escondido Police Department began investigating and through the use of video surveillance footage and prior arrest records, police identified the suspect as Dunford, a repeat offender.
Dunford, of Escondido, is a registered sex offender with numerous prior convictions for annoying a child and indecent exposure.
Police say he’s currently on active parole for these prior convictions and is under GPS surveillance.
Furthermore, GPS records confirmed that Dunford was inside the Escondido Public Library at the time of the June 22 incident.
Dunford was taken into custody and booked into the Vista Detention Facility Wednesday on several charges, including a lewd act in public, child annoying with priors and violation of parole.
He’s being held without bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.
Police say the mother in this case did the right thing by reporting the incident to authorities, despite her initial hesitation. Police encourage parents to always report suspicious activity.
