In Indiana, 56-year-old Melvin Harney Jr., officially recognized as a sexually violent predator in the state, was arrested. According to police, he repeatedly harassed female government employees in downtown Indianapolis and touched their legs. This is reported by WXIN, which has reviewed the court documents.
Three government employees reported to Indianapolis police that a man was following them and touching their legs without permission. The first incident occurred in a parking garage on May 4. One of the women was returning from work when the suspect followed her into the elevator.
He grabbed the woman by the sandal, put his hand into her shoe and began to touch her heel. When the woman demanded to stop, the man stated that she was bleeding and that he had bandages. In response, she pointed out that there were no wounds, but he grabbed her ankle several more times. As soon as the elevator doors opened, the woman ran out shouting, “Don’t touch me!” – and reported the incident to the police.
The second incident occurred on June 4, when another government employee was heading to a restaurant during her lunch break. She noticed a man following her and muttering something. Near the administrative building, he tried to grab her hand, but she pulled away.
The man then leaned over and said, “Show me those feet,” touched her right foot and asked who was doing her pedicure. The woman ran into a nearby building and called her colleagues for help. CCTV footage later confirmed that the man ran his fingers from the victim's heel to her ankle. According to investigators, during one of the episodes, Harney also pointed the phone under the woman's skirt, trying to take her off.
The third incident occurred on August 13 in the same Washington Street garage as the first. An Indiana Department of Health employee was walking to her car in the middle of the day when a man approached her and asked the time. Having received the answer, he continued to follow her.
At some point, the woman felt a touch on her right foot and, turning around, saw a man behind her, kneeling. He stated that there was “something” on her leg. The woman ran toward the stairs, but the man followed her into a restricted area and asked why she was “walking so fast,” before fleeing.
Investigators reviewed CCTV footage from all three incidents and concluded that the suspect was the same person. On September 10, Capitol Police officers spotted a man wearing the same shoes seen on camera near Monument Circle and detained him. It turned out to be Harney.
A man considered to be a “sexually violent predator” has been arrested after police say he repeatedly targeted female State employees downtown and tried to rub their feet. https://t.co/ZWsOwVmzze pic.twitter.com/DjQDVpJ1wV
— FOX59 News (@FOX59) September 22, 2026
It turned out that the man was included in the Indiana sex offender registry. Harney previously served a 23-year prison sentence for sexual assault and was released under GPS monitoring in early 2026, according to WXIN. Geolocation data confirmed that Harney was in the areas where all three attacks took place and allowed him to trace the routes he followed the victims.
When questioned on September 11, Harney admitted that he touched the legs of all three women to satisfy his sexual needs. According to him, women's legs are for him “the most sexually exciting part of the female anatomy.” The man also told police he “needed additional treatment” to “control his sexual desires.”
Harney was charged Sept. 17 in Marion County Superior Court with seven charges: three counts of sexual assault, three counts of assault and one count of public voyeurism. At a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, September 22, the judge set cash bail at $5,000. The next hearing is scheduled for October 6.
