Man accused of groping woman while she was vacuuming car refused to stop sitting on bucket

41-year-old Leonard Dewayne Steele, from Fort Walton Beach in Florida, has been charged with coming up behind a woman and groping her while she was vacuuming the interior of a car. The victim was cleaning the rental car at a business in Fort Walton Beach on June 10. A man, later identified as Steele, came up behind the woman and groped her chest.



The woman turned and noticed that Steele was masturbating with his other hand. The woman hit Steele with the vacuum hose and fled into the business, locking the door behind her. Steele fled the scene and could not be located. The victim was able to identify Steele from a sexual offender's website. Steele was located and arrested on July 26. He was charged with lewd and lascivious behaviour - exposing his sex organs and battery.

As police attempted to arrest Steele he sat on a bucket and refused to stand up. He continued to sit on the bucket, and despite multiple orders from Okaloosa County Sheriff's deputies, refused to stand up. A deputy was able to arrest him while he was sitting on the bucket. However, when the deputy then tried to force Steele to stand, Steele attempted to jerk away.



The two went to the ground, where Steele continued to try to twist his body. Once the deputy got Steele to the patrol car, Steele used his knee to block the deputy from shutting the door. A deputy had to reach in the opposite door and physically move Steele in order to get the door shut. The deputy sustained an abrasion on his arm from the struggle. Steele was charged with resisting or obstructing an officer without violence. His next scheduled court date is August 12.