A registered sex offender was seen lurking near at least two elementary schools and a park in Lakewood, Dallas alarming concerned parents in the process.
One of the witnesses, Charlotte Presley, said she saw the pedophile on Santa Fe Trail, just behind Tension at White Rock Lake on Thursday morning. Presley shared that she was certain that the sex offender was doing something “lewd and inappropriate” behind the trees. She added: “I don’t want to cross this gate or go anywhere near that area right now. I feel so uncomfortable.”
Her discomfort worsened and turned into fear when she received a letter from Mata Elementary where her child studies, about a similar incident happening on the same day.
Another school, Spanish House Elementary, also spotted a man near the fence outside the school playground. The man walked next toward a creek behind the school. The school officials became suspicious and called the police.
Mere minutes after, a teacher at Lumin Lindsley Park Community School told administrators that a man matching the same description went inside the campus fence, walked towards the playground, and requested to use the phone. The teacher refused the request, and the man then walked across the street to Lindsley Park.
The suspicious sightings of the same man in the three schools and their matching descriptions allowed authorities to identify the man as the “high risk” registered sex offender Daniel Gross, 42, in Lindsley Park.
Compounding the suspicious actions of Gross is the fact that he does not even live in the area. Gross has his addressed listed in Oak Cliff. He also had other past transgressions in his record including failing to register, committing crimes like criminal trespassing, indecent exposure, and theft, on top of a 2004 conviction for inappropriately touching a 15-year-old in Ohio.
Parents find the thought of Gross getting close to where the children are on three campuses really scary.
The authorities are now probing whether Gross has violated his parole. He has been placed on ankle monitor that will immediately alert authorities if the sex offender goes near a school or any designated Child Safety Zone.
Gross has not been seen in the area since his recent sightings in three different campuses.
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