Man charged with sexual assault, hit and run

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BY KEITH EPPS

A Fredericksburg man has been charged  with fondling a teenager’s buttocks shortly before he crashed his motor scooter while fleeing from the scene, police said.

James Leon Brown, 31, was taken into custody Monday after police got a tip from a witness regarding his whereabouts, city police spokeswoman Natatia Bledsoe said. He is charged with hit and run to an occupied vehicle, driving while revoked for drunken driving and sexual assault.

According to Bledsoe, a 15-year-old girl was at the fountain outside the downtown library at 1201 Caroline St. Sunday about 12:50 p.m. She was talking to her 21-year-old cousin when the suspect approached, brushed against the cousin and grabbed the buttocks of the girl. He then jumped on his scooter and rode off.

Seconds later, the suspect crashed into the side of a Honda Accord that was stopped on Caroline Street waiting for another car to park. The impact damaged the right front and rear doors of the Honda and knocked the suspect off the scooter. Bledsoe said the suspect got off the road, got back on his scooter and left the area going the wrong way on Caroline Street.

A number of people were in the area of the library Sunday, and at least one of them recognized Brown after the Honda was struck. The witness notified police, and Officer Julie Keene arrested him Monday on Prince Edward Street. Police also found the scooter and confiscated it.

Brown was placed in the Rappahannock Regional Jail.

Keith Epps:  540/374-5404

kepps@freelancestar.com

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