An Iowa man was arrested Thursday for masturbating at an Iowa City Kum & Go gas station.
The incident occurred a little after midnight in mid-March, though the suspect, 54-year-old Kenneth Kelly, was only recently arrested, according to 1630 KCJJ. At the time of the incident, Kelly made sexual comments to multiple customers at the Kum & Go convenience store in addition to pleasuring himself in front of them, the outlet reported.
Video surveillance footage from the store reportedly captured Kelly engaging in onanism. (RELATED: Civil War-Era Letter Shows Confederate Lieutenant Lamenting His Brother’s Condition Of ‘Chronic Masturbation’)
En Iowa, Cops: Man Pleasured Self, Then Departed From A Kum & Go Store | The Smoking Gun https://t.co/VHMF1m4v6h via @tsgnews
— John Seibert (@ugacrash) November 17, 2023
A local police officer then “canvassed the area” with images of Kelly, prompting multiple people at nearby businesses and residences to identify the masturbator, KCJJ reported. Witnesses from the March incident also picked Kelly out of a photo lineup, the outlet noted, enabling police to obtain a search warrant.
As soon as the officer approached and accosted Kelly at his apartment, the man confirmed that he owned clothes resembling those seen in the surveillance video but did not admit to pleasuring himself in the Kum & Go, per KCJJ.
Officers then placed Kelly under arrest, at which point he claimed that he had been itching his genitals, not spanking the proverbial monkey, according to the outlet. (RELATED: Brazilian University Expels Six Students Over Public Group Masturbation Video: REPORT)
Iowa History Daily🧵: On November 2, 1913, Tony Gentle was born. Co-founder of popular Iowa convenience store chain Kum & Go, Gentle helped to create one of Iowa’s most iconic brands while helping to pioneer the convenience store concept. #IowaOTD pic.twitter.com/5A1ZAMFhnW
— Notes on Iowa (@notesoniowa) November 2, 2023
Kelly has been charged with indecent exposure and could serve up to a year in jail if convicted, the outlet reported.
Kum & Go was founded in 1959 and operates over 390 locations across 13 states, according to the company website.