Berkeley police apprehended a 32-year-old suspect wanted in connection to two cases of a man following teenage girls and demanding hugs on Wednesday afternoon.
Christopher Lee Dalton, an Oakland resident, is a registered sex offender. He is now being charged in connection with two incidents, one on Sept. 29 and on Dec. 6, of following teenage girls and impersonating a police officer, according to a Berkeley police press release.
On Sept. 29, Dalton approached a teenage girl on the 1300 block of Gilman Street, and followed her, demanding a hug and blocking her path when she refused. He told her he was a police officer and was armed with a gun. Similarly, on Dec. 6, he followed a girl near McGee Avenue and Channing Way, made the same demand for a hug, blocked her path, and pretended he was a police officer armed with a knife.
Fortunately, both girls were able to flee safely from the scene. After Berkeley police began investigating, a third victim came forward about an incident from Aug. 25, where the suspect's license plate was captured.
Investigators were able to match the vehicle to one spotted in surveillance footage supplied by the community from the other two incidents, and Dalton was arrested in San Francisco on Wednesday.
He has been charged with communicating with a minor with the intent to commit a sex act, annoying/molesting a child with a prior offense, and violating his parole.
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