A 4-year-old girl pointed out a man standing without pants near the only road leading into her child care center on Tuesday, and within minutes, Lee County Sheriff's deputies had someone in custody. The man, identified as 49-year-old Henry Merson Jr., was arrested on a charge of indecent exposure after the girl's mother flagged him down near East Point Drive in Lehigh Acres.
According to an arrest report reviewed by Gulf Coast News and Weather, deputies responded to a complaint around 12:28 p.m. on Tuesday. The mother had been driving her daughter to Lehigh Child Care Center when she saw a man standing near East Point Drive with no pants on and exposing himself, the report states. East Point Drive serves as the sole access road to the school, meaning any family entering or leaving the facility would have had to pass the man.
It was the child in the backseat who first called it out. “He has no pants on!” the 4-year-old exclaimed, according to the arrest report cited by the outlet. The report notes the mother was concerned that more children would be subjected to the man if he remained in the area.
Deputies Find Suspect Within Feet of the Daycare
Responding deputies located the man approximately 50 to 60 feet from the child care center, per the arrest report. He was identified as Henry Merson Jr. and was still not wearing pants when deputies made contact with him, the report states. He was taken into custody and now faces the indecent exposure charge.
Public community service listings show Merson has operated a local computer repair business called Computer Professionals in Lehigh Acres, according to a post on a community bulletin board. State corporate filings show Lehigh Child Care Center, Inc. is registered at 1491 East Point Drive in Lehigh Acres. Licensing records list the facility's capacity at up to 225 children, according to Care.com, underscoring how many families pass through that corridor daily.
What Florida Law Says About the Charge
Under Florida Statute § 800.03, exposing sexual organs in public or near private property in a vulgar or indecent manner is classified as a first-degree misdemeanor for a first offense. A conviction on that charge carries statutory maximum penalties of up to one year in county jail, one year of probation, and a fine of up to $1,000, under Florida Statutes § 775.082 and § 775.083.
If prosecutors were to determine that an incident involved lewd or lascivious intent in the direct presence of a child under 16, the offense could instead be prosecuted as a felony under Florida Statute § 800.04, punishable by up to 15 years in prison, according to Hanlon Law. Florida law also establishes that a second or subsequent conviction under § 800.03 escalates from a misdemeanor to a third-degree felony, carrying up to five years in state prison and a $5,000 fine.
It remains unclear whether the Lee County State Attorney's Office will pursue the case as a misdemeanor or evaluate felony options given the daycare's proximity, whether Merson has any prior exposure convictions that could trigger a felony enhancement, or whether deputies had received previous complaints about similar conduct along the East Point Drive corridor. As with any pending case, the charge against Merson remains an allegation subject to judicial review.
Unincorporated Lehigh Acres Relies on Sheriff's Deputies
Lehigh Acres is an unincorporated community in Lee County with no municipal police department of its own, meaning Lee County Sheriff's Office deputies handle all local law enforcement calls there, including Tuesday's complaint. The arrest adds to a string of recent cases Lee County deputies have investigated in the area, including a repo driver threatened with a gun earlier in September.
