Repeat offender charged in multiple 'butt sniffing' incidents arrested again in Glendale
GLENDALE, Calif. (KABC) -- A registered sex offender who has a history of arrests in the San Fernando Valley for allegedly sniffing women's buttocks has been arrested again.
Calese Crowder, 39, was arrested last week by the Glendale Police Department.
Officers say they were called to a business in the 1500 block of Glenoaks Boulevard near Jefferson Elementary School on Friday.
There, witnesses say they saw Crowder crouching down and getting close to others.
Police said officers were also dispatched to a Marshalls store near South Brand Boulevard and East Broadway regarding a similar incident, prompting them to review surveillance footage from the businesses.
Police were able to identify Crowder in the footage, and he was eventually located in the 100 block of South Brand Boulevard.
Crowder was arrested for violating the terms of his parole, and the court will now decide what comes next. At last check, he was being held without bail.
Crowder was re-arrested in August 2025 after reports of yet another sniffing incident at a Walgreens store in Burbank.
Crowder was already on parole at the time and has a documented history of similar arrests for lewd conduct in both Glendale and Burbank -- dating back to 2021.
He admitted to violating his parole last year and was sentenced to serve more than 100 days in jail.
Just one month before the Walgreens incident, Crowder was again taken into custody after officers received a report of a suspicious person loitering in the women's department of Nordstrom Rack located at the Burbank Empire Center.
He was later found at a nearby Walmart, where police say he was seen following a female shopper through the store.
"While in the women's section, the suspect was observed following a female customer, crouching near her, and engaging in lewd behavior by inappropriately sniffing her buttocks," police shared in a statement last year. "Given the nature of the behavior, officers made contact with the suspect and detained him for further investigation."
In 2023, Crowder made headlines for an alleged stalking incident captured on video.
Michaela Witter said she was stalked by Crowder at a Barnes and Noble bookstore in Burbank in August 2023.
Her TikTok video of the incident garnered millions of views.
In the video, Crowder is seen crouching down near Witter's legs. When Witter asked him what he was doing, he told her that he was tying his shoes.
She said it looked like he was smelling her from behind. Witter also accused Crowder of doing the same thing to another woman at the store.
City News Service contributed to this report.
