By the Daily Post staff
Palo Alto police are searching for a man who committed a lewd act while in the self-checkout line of the Midtown Safeway.
On Wednesday (Jan. 26) at about 11 a.m., a woman in her 20s was ringing up groceries in the self-checkout line when she noticed a man standing very close behind her, according to police.
Then another man approached them and told the woman that the perpetrator had been following her and taking pictures of her. He yelled at the guy who had been following the woman. The woman was scared and quickly left the store.
Once outside, she noticed what she believed to be biological fluid on the back of her shirt and pants, police said.
The woman reported the incident the next day, on Thursday.
Police reviewed Safeway’s surveillance video of the incident, which shows the man pleasuring himself while standing immediately behind the victim. But the perpetrator remained clothed and was acting discreetly, police said.
Police said the man they’re seeking is black, possibly in his 20s or 30s, about six feet tall and 210 pounds. He was wearing a black shirt and gray zippered sweatshirt under an orange construction vest, blue jeans, and black sneakers with white markings. He had a large set of keys hanging off the front of his belt. He was wearing a black face covering and a black baseball hat.
Video surveillance showed him returning to a white Chevrolet or GMC full-size van with swing-out side doors that was parked in the Safeway parking lot at 2811 Middlefield Road.
Police said they are actively investigating this incident. They said they’re not aware of any similar incidents in Palo Alto or neighboring cities.
Police are hoping to identify and interview the man who confronted the perpetrator and are asking that person to contact the Palo Alto Police Department at (650) 329-2413.
At least he was fully masked!
Perhaps he was a foreign visitor, and misunderstood what “self checkout” meant.
Can’t show his picture that’s racis