Man sought on suspicion of groping woman at La Verne Public Library

LA VERNE, Calif. (KABC) -- Authorities are asking for the public's help to find a man suspected of groping and sexually harassing women at the La Verne Public Library.

Around 12:13 p.m. Thursday, La Verne officers received a call regarding a sexual battery that happened at the library, located in the 3600 block of D Street.

Officers learned a man entered the library, walked past a woman and squeezed her butt with his hand and brushed his body against hers.

That suspect was then seen in the women's bathroom. A woman using the restroom saw the suspect peeking over from the stall near hers. When the suspect was caught, he fled from the bathroom and exited the library through nearby emergency doors.

He fled north on Foothill Boulevard, west of Fruit Street, according to witnesses. Officers then searched for the suspect, when a resident at a nearby mobile home community called to report a man matching the description of the library suspect had stolen her car.

Authorities said she gave a similar description of the library suspect, but said the car thief was not wearing a shirt. When authorities searched the area, they found a shirt and sweatshirt in a neighbor's backyard. Those items matched the library suspect's description.

The suspect is described as a man in his 20s with a shaved head. He is 5 feet 8 inches tall with a thin build. He was last seen wearing baggy jeans, a royal blue "dry fit" type of shirt and a white and black hoodie with a print similar to camouflage.

The stolen vehicle was described as a 1999 white Buick Century four-door sedan with the California license plate 5HVH674.

Anyone with more information was urged to call the La Verne Police Department at (909) 596-1913.