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Man accused of showing inappropriate photo of himself to a young girl in Walmart

Charlotte County Sheriff's Office investigation
Posted at 6:06 PM, Jan 28, 2022
and last updated 2022-01-28 18:14:33-05

CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. — A Punta Gorda man was taken taken into custody after deputies say he showed a fourteen-year-old girl an inappropriate photo of himself.

According to the Charlotte County authorities Deputy J. Smith received a call on January 14, 2022 around 4:30 p.m. to head to the Walmart on 375 Kings Highway.

In the police report, Jonathan Thacker, a 25-year-old white male saw a girl at Walmart , in the electronic section, who appeared to be alone.

The victim’s mother was reported in the bathroom when the man placed his phone on a shelf near the victim.

A picture of his penis was visible on the screen.

The victim was reported to have stepped away and called out for her mom.

As the victim was moving away, the man was pretending to look at the television screens as he waited for the employees to be out of sight, according to the police report.

He then held his arm out to the victim with his phone in his hand displaying the photo of his genitals.

The police report says that the man started tapping on a shelf so that the girl would look.

The victim then walked away and so did the guy according to the police report and store video footage.

The man’s car was tracked by Deputy Smith after he reviewed the security footage.

While police were investigating the case further, Detective J. Lindsey was able to track his vehicle and take him into custody on January 27, 2022.

Thacker was transported to the Charlotte County Jail Headquarters for an interview.

'Thacker invoked his right to an attorney after seeing the picture of his genitals on the camera," the police report included.

As Charlotte County deputies invested the case, they said they found Thacker had a prior arrest for "lewd exposure of sexual organs" and he was also a suspect in two other cases involving lewd exposure.

The police report also includes the record for his court date, which is unannounced as of right now.