Man accused of lewd/lascivious conduct; sheriff's office says there may be more victims
Marion County Sheriff's detectives have charged a man with lewd and lascivious molestation and lewd and lascivious exhibition involving a child, and they suspect there may be more victims.
Jarrell Lavas Wilkerson was booked into the Marion County Jail shortly before 9 a.m. Friday.
Locally, Wilkerson has served 18 months of probation for flee or attempt to elude police officer/lights and sirens and driving on a license that has been suspended or revoked/prior offense, according to court records.
School officials said the 44-year-old Ocala man was a past volunteer coach for the Vanguard High School junior varsity football team. This year, Wilkerson was not a volunteer, officials said.
Last month, school officials said, they were notified about the allegations and immediately ordered Wilkerson to stay away from the school and students.
Wilkerson did pass a background check to be a volunteer at the school, officials said.
Alleged incidents
Sheriff's Detective Karla Santana-Palau said in her report that a case coordinator at Kimberly's Center for Child Protection interviewed a girl about inappropriate contacts between her and Wilkerson.
The minor said the incidents began when she was in the fourth grade. She alleged Wilkerson touched her breast while wrestling with her and also touched her leg. She said Wilkerson asked her if she liked watching pornography and asked her about sex.
Last month, the girl said, Wilkerson exposed and touched himself while driving her home. He also made remarks about her body.
When she got home, the girl reached out to Snapchat's Artificial Intelligence, which recommended she call the sexual abuse hotline. A state Department of Children and Families official called the girl's mother the next day, according to the arrest report.
The detective said there have been at least three past reports accusing Wilkerson of similar behavior. The cases were dropped due to lack of physical evidence.
Wilkerson's interview with detectives
Santana-Palau and Detective Annemarie Larocque interviewed Wilkerson at the MCSO on Friday. Wilkerson denied touching himself when the girl was in the vehicle. He admitted his penis was exposed, but said that was because he had to urinate in a bottle before picking up the girl. He said he did not have time to fix himself and had to use a shirt to cover his private area, according to the arrest report.
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Wilkerson said he usually drives with his hands holding his private area. He said he remembered talking to the girl about pornography and sex. He denied touching the girl and doesn't know anything about other potential victims.
Detectives are concerned there may be more victims. Anyone with information about this case or any related case should call Santana-Palau at (352) 368-3548.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Detectives accuse man of molesting girl and fear there may be more victims
