West Kelowna family change room flasher facing several charges | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
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West Kelowna family change room flasher facing several charges

Johnson Bentley Memorial Aquatic Centre.
Image Credit: Google Streetview

WEST KELOWNA - A 34-year-old man has been charged with three counts of exposing his genitals to a minor in West Kelowna. 

The details of the charges and names of victims are protected by a court-ordered publication ban, but according to public documents, Joseph Drew Perkins, born in 1982, remains in custody ahead of a March 2 bail hearing.

When police were called to the Johnson Bentley Aquatic Centre at 7:20 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 25., they found Perkins still in the change room, according to an RCMP media release.

Perkins refused to identify himself when police arrived, but was taken into custody without incident. Police were later able to identify him using his fingerprints.

"Staff of the facility were quick to call the police, which allowed our officers to make an arrest before others could be further victimized,” Staff Sgt. Lesli Roseberry says in the release.

Since 2008, Perkins has been arrested and charged with minor crimes in several B.C. cities including Maple Ridge, Port Coquitlam, Nelson, Abbotsford, Kamloops and Sidney. In Kelowna in 2010 he was convicted of theft under $5,000 and in 2012 of possession of a controlled substance, as well as numerous breaches.
 
Investigators think there may be more victims from who witnessed the incident on Saturday.

“We suspect there may be other members of the public who were at the pool, who may have witnessed this man’s behaviour prior to or after the alleged incident, or may have been victimized themselves,” Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey says in the release.

If you witnessed this incident and have not yet spoken to police you are asked to contact West Kelowna RCMP at 250-768-2880.


To contact a reporter for this story, email Jenna Hickman or call 250-808-0143 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

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