'Creepy' man stealthily chopped off chunks of women's hair, Tallahassee police say

A 26-year-old man, described by witnesses as "creepy," separately used scissors and a trimmer on two different women to stealthily lop off chunks of their hair, Tallahassee police said Tuesday.

He was charged with misdemeanor battery and booked and released from the Leon County Detention Facility Tuesday morning. (The Tallahassee Democrat does not identify people arrested on misdemeanor charges.)

According to court records, here's what happened:

A woman was out dancing with her sister and friends at a bar last month, enjoying Fire Betty's "Pop Punk and Emo Night" in Midtown Tallahassee, when a clump of her hair fell into her hands. Her sister's boyfriend looked closer and it was evident to him the hair had been cut off.

The victim spoke with the bar's security and later to the Tallahassee Police Department. In the meantime, she spent $50 to fix her hair and was left traumatized with panic attacks and nightmares. She also started staying home "out of fear and shame."

The woman's sister posted on Facebook to explain it "happened in seconds and she never felt anyone touch her." She urged women to be careful if they were planning to go out to any Midtown Tallahassee bars.

"If you saw anything or think you might know something please reach out. Thank you," the post says.

It wasn't long before another woman did exactly that.

Another victim surfaces with surreptitiously chopped hair

The other victim explained how the same thing happened to her some months prior and thought it might be the same guy. In fact, that woman said she had been friends with the man.

She said a group of friends went back to the alleged hair cutter's apartment after a night out at another bar in February that also had an 'emo' theme.

"While socializing at the bar, several witnesses stated (the man) was acting 'creepy' due to him volunteering to cut some females' hair and talking about him liking short hair on girls," court records say.

He started playing with her hair and encouraging her to let him shave or trim her hair, but the woman said she wanted to keep her hair longer. Eventually, the woman went home and woke the next morning to find "several large sections of her hair had been cut off."

She too avoided going anywhere and had nightmares about the incident, eventually spending $150 to salvage her hair.

Woman's hair was 'butchered,' bartender says

Magdalena Dentriades was bartending at Fire Betty's back bar, so she didn't see when the woman there got an unsolicited haircut. But it didn't take long for word to spread.

"She was very, very upset about the whole thing," Dentriades said. "I feel terrible about it. That's just awful."

Pop Punk and Emo Night is one of the bar's most popular events, she added, so it was extra packed inside.

With a busy crowd, Dentriades said she could "totally see how someone could've quickly gotten away with it. I can't imagine just dancing in the middle of a crowd and then all of a sudden have my ponytail ...." She trailed off, but added it was like someone "butchered her."

After both victims went to the police, the man was eventually identified and detectives brought him in for questioning. Court records show he "became sick while confessing" and threw up during the interview.

He said he used a pair of scissors to cut the victim's hair at his apartment; electric trimmers were used to cut the victim's hair at Fire Betty's.

He told investigators he didn't know why he did it but explained that "he did have social anxiety when he went out and believed he cut their hair when his anxiety was combined with alcohol consumption."

TPD spokesperson Heather Merritt said the nonconsensual hair cutting “is a crime, and we will investigate it fully. It is something we take very seriously."

How to contact Tallahassee police

∎ TPD encourages anyone who may have experienced something similar to contact Det. Robert Kelly at (850) 891-4774 or by email at robert.kelly@talgov.com.

Breaking & trending news reporter Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: 'Creepy' man charged with stealthily cutting Tallahassee women's hair