Sarasota man accused of exposing himself to family on Lido Beach

Man accused of exposing himself at Lido Beach

Sarasota Police arrested 29-year-old Daniel Mensch, of Sarasota, for indecent exposure and lewd and lascivious behavior. FOX 13's Kimberly Kuizon reports.

SARASOTA, Fla. - A Sarasota man is accused of exposing himself to a family on Lido Beach.

The family told police it was no accident, and he clearly wanted to be seen. 

Now investigators are asking if anyone else has been a victim. 

"Unfortunately, they noticed a man was nearby, and that gentleman chose to expose himself to this family," said Genevieve Judge with Sarasota Police. 

The family told investigators the man made eye contact with them and appeared to expose himself intentionally. 

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They said he even used his phone to point at his private area and appeared to try and record their reaction.

"They saw that something wrong had happened, and they reported it to officers immediately. They also documented this man. They took pictures of this man, and they provided it to our officers," said Judge. 

In less than a day's time, Sarasota Police identified the man as 29-year-old Daniel Mensch, of Sarasota. 

They arrested him the following morning on Lido Beach. 

Now investigators are working to determine if Mensch has done this before. 

"If folks have had interaction with this individual and it was something of criminal nature or something that didn’t feel right, we are encouraging them to call Sarasota police," said Judge. 

What they're saying:

Judy Harper is a frequent visitor to Lido. 

She said this is unusual news. 

"I'm saddened they had to go through it, but I do believe it's a one-time deal. I still feel safe here at the beach. I feel there are a lot of people around us who would come out and protect us if we needed it," said Harper. 

Like so many others, Harper said one person's actions won't deter her from enjoying paradise.

"This could happen anywhere. I’m here this Thursday, next Thursday and the Thursday after," she said.

What's next:

Mensch faces four charges of indecent exposure and two counts of lewd and lascivious behavior involving a victim younger than 18. 

Mensch has bonded out of jail and will face a judge for his arraignment on Sept. 26. 

Court records show Mensch told investigators he went to a friend's house to smoke marijuana the date of the incident. 

He at first said he did not recall going to Lido Beach, until he was shown photos of himself. 

Mensch eventually told investigators he remembered going to Lido, but did not remember or recall doing such a thing. 

Mensch told investigators that because of the stress of his life and PTSD, he can barely remember if he ate a meal or what day it was.