Two children riding scooters to school near the University of South Florida were chased into a parking lot last morning by a 32-year-old man who exposed himself and grabbed one of them, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office. Deputies say witnesses stepped in and stopped the attack before it could go further, and the man, identified as Quaze Moore, was arrested at the scene.
According to HCSO, deputies responded to a 911 call for service just before 6:49 a.m. Wednesday near 15th Street and College Park Drive in Tampa. The sheriff's office says Moore approached the two juveniles as they rode their scooters to school, then chased them to a nearby parking lot, where he exposed himself and performed explicit acts in front of them before grabbing one of the children.
On August 12, 2026, at 6:49 a.m., #teamHCSO deputies responded to a 911 call for service near 15th Street and College Park Drive in Tampa.
— HCSO (@HCSOSheriff) August 13, 2026
Two juveniles riding scooters to school were approached by Quaze Moore, 32. Moore chased them to a nearby parking lot, exposed himself,… pic.twitter.com/dPduI9JwgG
Deputies say witnesses stopped the attack before Moore could do more harm. Sheriff Chad Chronister credited those bystanders directly, saying witnesses “stopped a predator in the act.” Chronister added that “adults who prey on children will not be tolerated in the community” and that offenders “will face the full force of the law and be held fully accountable,” according to the same HCSO account.
Charges Carry Years of Prison Exposure
Moore was arrested and charged with lewd or lascivious molestation involving a defendant age 18 or older and a victim between 12 and 15 years old, along with two counts of lewd or lascivious exhibition and one count of resisting an officer without violence, per HCSO. Under Florida Statute 800.04(5), lewd or lascivious molestation of a victim in that age range by an adult is a second-degree felony punishable by up to 15 years in state prison, up to $10,000 in fines, and mandatory sex offender probation, according to The Florida Senate.
Each of the two exhibition counts filed against Moore also carries up to 15 years in prison under Section 800.04(7) of the Florida Statutes, which covers intentionally exposing sexual organs or engaging in explicit sexual acts in the presence of a minor under 16, per Florida Senate records. The resisting-an-officer charge is a first-degree misdemeanor under Section 843.02, punishable by up to a year in county jail or a $1,000 fine, according to the same statutory language.
Attack Came Days Into the New School Year
The encounter took place just two days after Hillsborough County Public Schools began its 2026–2027 academic year on Monday, August 10, according to local school calendar records reported by FOX 13 Tampa Bay. That timing put children back on their morning scooter and bike routes to campus right as the attack unfolded. The area around 15th Street and College Park Drive sits in a dense residential pocket less than a mile west of USF's main entrance, just south of East Fowler Avenue, according to real estate listings for the neighborhood.
The corridor has drawn law enforcement attention before. In December 2024, HCSO joined the Tampa Police Department and the Florida Department of Corrections for a joint operation along the North 15th Street corridor near East Fowler Avenue that resulted in 146 traffic stops and 17 arrests targeting localized crime trends, per HCSO.
Part of a Broader Push Against Child Predators
Wednesday's arrest adds to a string of recent HCSO cases involving child predators. In a case reported by Hoodline in May, a multi-week undercover operation by the sheriff's Internet Predator Unit and Human Trafficking Section led to 89 arrests and more than 1,200 felony counts tied to child exploitation countywide. And in April, deputies arrested a man on identical lewd or lascivious molestation charges involving a 13-year-old, a case Hoodline covered under the headline “Tampa Easter Visit Ends With Bust Of Registered Sexual Predator.”
Sheriff Chronister has also pushed for policy changes aimed at online predators, endorsing federal legislation in January that would limit private messaging features used to target children, according to HCSO. The sheriff's office has framed Wednesday's arrest within that same broader mission of protecting children in Hillsborough County.
The rise in scooter and hoverboard commuting among local kids has drawn its own safety attention this year. AAA launched a public safety campaign across Hillsborough County in June, citing a regional surge in children using e-rides to get to and from school, a trend Hoodline reported on at the time. Open questions remain about the exact ages and condition of the two juveniles involved Wednesday, as well as details on Moore's bond status and any upcoming court proceedings.
