A New College of Florida marketing director was arrested Tuesday night for exposing his sexual organs, Manatee County officials say. The incident marks one of four arrests for indecent exposure in Sarasota and Manatee Counties.
Frederick Piccolo Jr., 47, previously worked as the spokesperson for Gov. Ron DeSantis and the director of marketing, media and strategic communication at NCF. No details have been released yet regarding the incident, but according to Sarasota County court records, Piccolo has three separate and active cases filed against him for exposing sexual organs in changing rooms at the University Town Center in Sarasota.
Piccolo’s no longer listed on NCF’s directory page as his page was recently removed. A NCF’s media spokesperson could not be reached to clarify Piccolo’s employment status.
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During an incident at a UTC Banana Republic on Aug. 22, Piccolo was being assisted by the store manager when he allegedly began stroking his penis as he looked at the woman through the open fitting room, deputies wrote in an arrest affidavit. She immediately walked away and left Piccolo alone in the fitting room. He quickly got dressed and left the store without buying anything.
Frederick Piccolo Jr. has four separate and active cases filed against him for exposing his sexual organs in Manatee and Sarasota counties, court records show.
“This was an unwelcomed act that disgusted her as she was attempting to provide customer service to the defendant who she believed was a civilized customer,” deputies wrote in the affidavit.
While at a UTC Dillard’s on Sept. 3, Piccolo allegely approached another store employee completely naked with no effort to cover or conceal himself, deputies wrote in an affidavit.
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As the employee went to the fitting rooms to assist Piccolo, he was completely naked, deputies wrote in an affidavit. Feeling uncomfortable, the employee asked another sales associate to assist. When the coworker approached Piccolo, she told deputies he was still nude. After she left Piccolo alone, he got dressed and left the store without making a purchase.
During a Sept. 4 incident, camera footage captured Piccolo’s “bizarre behavior” as he allegedly approached an employee at the UTC Dillard’s fitting room while undressed, deputies wrote in an arrest affidavit.
After Piccolo approached the entryway of the fitting rooms completely naked, the woman refused to assist him any further, deputies wrote in an affidavit. He subsequently got dressed, purchased some clothing items he tried on and left the store.
Piccolo resigned as a spokesperson for DeSantis in December 2020 after deleting his Twitter account following a controversial tweet about those who died from COVID-19, according to reporting from the Orlando Sentinel.
Between Sarasota and Manatee counties, he faces four total charges for exposing sexual organs. He’s facing a trial by jury for the Sarasota County charges on May 27.
Melissa Pérez-Carrillo covers breaking news and public safety for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Reach out at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Manatee deputies arrest DeSantis spokesperson for indecent exposure
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