Father Chases Down Man Who Exposed Himself To His Son

Last updated on Thursday, November 29, 2012

(INDIANAPOLIS) - An Indianapolis father chased down a man he says exposed himself to his son in a store restroom.

Police say Curtis Dwayne Smith, 30, exposed himself to the five-year-old boy Tuesday night at the Pike Plaza Meijer store.

WTHR reports, Marlin Ochoa chased Smith down and held him until police arrived.

"I got furious. I wanted to kill him," Ochoa said.

The father says if he'd had a weapon, he'd be in jail and Smith would be dead.

"That's the way I felt and I think that's the way every father should feel in a situation like this," Ochoa said.

He says he was using the store's restroom while his son waited by the hand dryer.

"I kept on talking to him, to make sure that he was there," Ochoa said.

But at one point, Ochoa says he couldn't hear his little boy talking. Instead, all he heard was the sound of a hand dryer.

"When I stepped out and looked, (Smith) was showing his genitals to my son," Ochoa said. "We started wrestling and I grabbed him and asked the staff that was around there to please call the police."

Ochoa says he felt helpless for a moment, but then called 911 himself when no one else would help him. He was still holding Smith on the ground.

"I told him, 'Don't move. If you move, there's going to be worse consequences,' because I felt like killing him at that time," Ochoa said.

Looking back, Ochoa says his gut tells him why others refused to help.

"They looked at me like I was nothing," he said.

Now, Ochoa just wants his son to be okay.

"Every time he talks about it, he cries. Like, he gets scared," Ochoa said.

When that happens, though, Ochoa is there for his little boy, just like he was in the bathroom.

"I wanted to protect my son with everything I have," Ochoa said.

A Meijer spokesperson would only say that they are cooperating with law enforcement. Smith has a $25,000 bond and is set to be in court on December 3.

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