VCU Police arrest man on sexual assault, indecent exposure charges
The VCU Police Department announced the arrest of Richmond man Marcello Toliver on two charges of sexual battery and a separate charge of indecent exposure last Thursday.
Mason Brown
Staff Writer
Commonwealth Times’ Twitter
The VCU Police Department announced the arrest of Richmond man Marcello Toliver on two charges of sexual battery and a separate charge of indecent exposure last Thursday.
Toliver is responsible for the four separate incidents that occurred Tuesday and Wednesday on and off the Monroe Park Campus, according to VCU Police.
VCU Police arrested Toliver on Wednesday, Sept. 28 on the 1500 Block of West Cary Street. Toliver is being held without bond for the three charges.
“I just don’t understand how someone could do that in the broad daylight,” said freshmen Avonia Gregory. “Honestly, if you’re going to do stuff in the broad daylight that makes me kind of antsy … VCU Police did a good job, but I feel like there (are) still other people out there.”
Toliver was arrested after a woman contacted police to report that a male exposed himself near the intersection of Floyd Avenue and Morris Street. While responding, a man matching the description of the suspect was stopped on the corner of Grove Avenue and North Harrison Street by a VCU Police investigator.
“I was surprised because I had never heard of anything like that happening before,” said freshmen Chentel Hankins. “I like the fact that we get the alerts, they let you know, ‘hey this is going on; be aware and prepared.’ I like the fact that we got the description of the guy so you can be more aware and alert … it was definitely an eye-opener.”
According to VCU Police Chief John Venuti, the open communication on campus, work with the Richmond Police Department and proactive police work led to the success in the arrest.
“VCU remains a very safe campus, and we will not tolerate victimization of members of our community and will respond aggressively with all available resources to apprehend and prosecute the people responsible,” Venuti said in the release announcing the arrest.
“Campus safety is everyone’s responsibility, and here at VCU we have 50,000 students, faculty and staff watching and listening for anything that is suspicious or unusual. If you have bad intentions, go somewhere else.”
