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Serial flasher arrested for 16th time

Serial flasher in Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A man has been arrested for touching himself in front of a group of children as they tried to board a bus, but this isn’t the first time something like this has happened.

Richard Beavers, 41, has had 39 run-ins with the police in the last 16 years, and the majority of those cases were incidents involving public indecency and drugs.

Beavers was caught touching and exposing himself as children walked to the bus stop near East 39th Street and North Arlington Avenue. Police tracked him down.

“What I can say is usually the embarrassment of getting caught and having your face on the news is enough,” said Sgt. Grace Sibley of Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

But, that’s not the case for Beavers. Looking back over the last 16 years, mugshots pile up: 16 public indecency cases in Indianapolis. In those, Beavers has 24 separate charges of public indecency where he was found guilty for 11, 11 were dismissed, and two cases are pending.

IMPD refused Tuesday to release any of Beavers’ jail-booking photos.

“If there is someone that we identify as an issue, we obviously have ways for people to register if they’re sex offenders and things like that,” Sibley said. “But, yeah, we absolutely encourage our officers to remain aware of who is on their beat.”

We did a quick search on the National Sex Offender Registry and it brings up zero results for the Plainfield man. The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office says that’s because he has not been convicted of any offenses requiring him to be placed on the registry.

IMPD says Beavers and similar people are out there and the best way to keep yourself safe is by just being aware of your surroundings and getting away from anyone trying to approach you in a strange way.

“Who knows what the intention is at the end of the day?” Sibley said. “And I think it’s appropriate to always remain aware and don’t let people approach you for any reason if that’s something that you’re not comfortable with.”

The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office says Beavers served multiple stints in jail or prison, but was most recently sentenced to home detention and probation with mental health evaluations.

IMPD says if you see something — and hopefully you don’t have to — then say something.

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