A 30-year-old man is facing multiple charges for criminal harassment in connection to half a dozen incidents where women were allegedly approached and solicited.
According to the Lethbridge Police Service between April 9th and 15th officers responded to several complaints involving an unknown man who is alleged to have approached young girls and women on numerous occasions asking “to hang out, attempting to persuade them to enter his vehicle and in some of the incidents, offering cash if they would comply.” Police say the victims range in age from 11 to 45 years old, with five of the alleged incidents happening on the city’s west side and one on the south side.
“In all cases, the females immediately declined the male’s advances, but he continued to persist, either repeating or restating his solicitations multiple times, causing the victims to fear for their safety and leave the area,” reads a statement from the Lethbridge Police service. “In most cases, the male was inside his vehicle and would pull up alongside the victims to speak to them, but in one instance he was reported soliciting staff and customers inside a grocery store where he was recorded on video surveillance.”
Police have charged Yahya Mehmet with criminal harassment. The 30-year-old man has been released from custody following a Judicial Interim Release hearing. His release reportedly comes with several conditions including having no contact with the victims and no contact with anyone under the age of 16 years old, except for contact deemed as “necessary to conduct transactions with a customer” at his work. He is next scheduled to appear in court on May 17th.