Florida man wearing girls' underwear slapped teen on butt, deputies say

William Walsh charged with child abuse

PALM COAST, Fla. – A man was wearing girls' underwear when he was arrested on suspicion of slapping a teenager on the butt, according to the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.

According to a WKMG report, the 14-year-old victim told deputies she was walking near State Highway 100 and McCormick Drive on Jan. 31 when a man, later identified as 52-year-old William Walsh, smacked her on the butt and said, "Hey let me get some of that," the affidavit said.

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The girl went home and told her great-grandmother about the incident and she reported it to police.

In another incident, a mother approached a patrolling deputy on Friday and said a man had approached her 8-year-old daughter while she was at the bus stop. The girl said the man showed her a picture of his lost dog and asked for help finding it, deputies said.

The mother told the deputy that a man, later identified as Walsh, has been known to ride around the area on his bicycle and tries to talk to children when adults aren't around, according to the charging affidavit.

The deputy saw Walsh riding his bike in the area and stopped him because he fit the description of the man children described seeing at the bus stop.

Walsh had two plastic bags hanging from the handle bars of his bike and the deputy could see three pairs of girls' underwear in plain view, deputies said. Walsh claimed he bought them for a girl, but could not provide the girl's name.

It was discovered during a search that Walsh was also wearing girls' underwear, the affidavit said.

The teenage girl involved in the previous incident was able to identify Walsh during a photo lineup, deputies said. The victim was crying and distraught.

Walsh is charged with child abuse.