PALO ALTO – Authorities are searching for a man who allegedly exposed himself to a 12-year-old girl in Palo Alto over the weekend.
The girl was riding her bicycle on the 800 block of Driftwood Drive between 3 and 4 p.m. Sunday when a car pulled up next to her and the driver asked her for directions, the Palo Alto Police Department said in a news release.
Police said the girl looked into the vehicle and saw the driver touching his exposed genitals.
The man then opened the driver’s door as if to get out and the girl rode away, said police, adding that the man briefly drove after her but left the area at the same time the girl noticed a family walking nearby.
Police said the girl returned home and reported the incident to a parent, who in turn contacted authorities.
The victim described the suspect as a Latino man in his 30s. He was bald or had “extremely close-cropped hair” and was last seen wearing large silver sunglasses, a light-colored denim jacket and dark-colored denim pants. The car was described as a silver-colored Toyota, possibly a Camry, with the letter “H” in the license plate number.
No similar incidents have been reported in the city for more than a year, police said.
Anyone with information related to the case can contact the police department at 650-329-2413. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call or text 650-383-8984 or email paloalto@tipnow.org.
