Exposure suspect named
By Tom Clark
Assistant News Editor

University Police arrested a man related to the recent wave of indecent exposure incidents on campus Nov. 27.

Ferdinand Patrick Lizama, a Winston-Salem resident, was arrested in Reynolda Hall for allegedly exposing himself to a female student that was studying near the Green Room.
As University Police believed, the man is not a student at the university.

Police said the female law student sitting in the study lounge noticed that Lizama had been staring at her for an extended period of time. After about half an hour, the student realized that the man was masturbating under his shirt, and she discretely called University Police, who responded immediately.

Shortly before 7 p.m., University Police apprehended Lizama and charged him with one count of indecent exposure, according to University Police Chief Regina Lawson.

Lizama was released on bond from the Forsyth County Detention Center Nov. 28. He was charged with indecent exposure and will appear in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County court Dec. 13.

Lawson said the man is believed to have been involved in other indecent exposure cases on campus, and that students targeted in those incidents are being contacted to try to identify the man as the public masturbator they encountered.

Currently, only one witness has positively identified Lizama, and he therefore has been charged for only this most recent incident out of the approximately 10 reported cases since last April.

“We haven’t had any additional reports (since the arrest) but we don’t want to make the assumption that he was responsible for all the previously reported incidents,” Lawson said. “We still want our students to use caution.”

Although Lizama is not being charged with any previous indecent exposure incidents on campus, University Police are still investigating possible connections to previous cases.

Two different suspects are being sought for previous incidents in Tribble Hall, Benson University Center, Johnson Residence Hall, the new Franklin D. Miller Fitness Center and Reynolda Hall.

A sketch was drawn of the younger suspect in early October, and an advisory was posted for students to beware of the man “who seems very familiar with the campus and is very student-like in appearance.”

According to Lawson, police believe that Lizama is the man depicted in the sketch.
The second suspect, described as a middle-aged black male, has not yet been identified, and police are still searching for him.

Signs have been posted in residence halls and public buildings warning of the incidents. Police feel that with greater awareness on campus, the incidents will be less common as has recently proven true.

Police encourage students not to confront the suspect if they identify him or are attacked. Students are urged to call University Police at 911 if they believe they see the suspect.