TAMPA, FL — A 28-year-old man was arrested after he sexually battered a victim at the University Mall, repeatedly following her into a women's restroom, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said in a social media post. (Watch surveillance footage of the suspect going into the bathroom and deputy-worn bodycam footage of his arrest below.)
Deputies responded to the mall shortly after 6 p.m. on Oct. 20 for a reported sex offense.
During the investigation, deputies learned that Christopher Anderson allegedly put his hand down the victim's pants and touched her genitals, the sheriff's office said.
Mall surveillance video also showed the victim trying to hide in the women's restroom, where Anderson entered repeatedly and approached her, according to HCSO. Inside the restroom, he allegedly put his hands under her shirt and grabbed her breasts.
He was arrested at the mall and found carrying a pocketknife.
He faces charges including battery, carrying a concealed weapon as a convicted felon, possession of a weapon during the commission of a felony, resisting an officer without violence, failure to register electronic mail addresses or internet identifiers as a sexual offender, and six counts of violating probation, the sheriff's office said.
Watch the video footage from the incident and his arrest:
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