BRIGHTON — Three females enjoying the outdoors at Brighton Ski Resort say a man made them uncomfortable and afraid with inappropriate comments and, in one case, by touching a woman, police say.
The 53-year-old Tooele man was arrested Tuesday for investigation of forcible sexual abuse.
The incidents happened on Friday at Brighton and Silver Lake, 8050 S. Brighton Loop Road.
Two girls, ages 15 and 17, were taking photographs for their senior picture when they say the man approached them and “told the girls that he wished they were his lovers and told them how stunning they were,” according to a police affidavit.
The girls told police the man then offered them some “herb,” which they declined.
“(He) told the girls that they should go behind a tree and he would take photographs of the girls without their tops. The girls took their camera and ran down the mountain. (The man) proceeded to follow the girls and asked them if he said something wrong or made them feel uncomfortable,” the affidavit states.
Unified police were contacted, and while they were looking for the man, another woman called emergency dispatchers to report that the same man had approached her and asked if she wanted to go on a hike with him, according to the affidavit.
“(She) said during the hike (he) was making inappropriate comments about her body,” police wrote.
The woman then told the man that she was going to continue hiking alone. And that point, the man asked for a hug “and grabbed her before she could stop him,” according to the affidavit. During the hug, police say the man inappropriately grabbed the woman’s buttocks.
“(The woman) said she quickly hiked up the trail and hid behind a tree,” the affidavit says. When interviewed by police, the officer noted that she was “hysterical.”
After some investigation, police were able to identify the man and on Tuesday went to his house in Tooele.
“Upon approach to the residence, (he) exited the home and demanded why officers were at his home. Detectives advised (him) that he was under arrest,” the affidavit states, adding that the man attempted to go back into his home and close the door and then resisted arrested when the officers grabbed him.
When interviewed, the man admitted having contact with the three, but denied asking the girls to disrobe or inappropriately touching the woman, according to the affidavit.