A young woman who was accosted on her way to work last week is frustrated nothing has been done about the incident that left her shaken.
The young woman, who asked to remain anonymous, was walking to work, along Front Street, one morning last week when she says a man on the street made numerous sexually lewd comments to her .
As she walked near Thor Motors with headphones in, she said two men were standing near the dealership’s entrance and made efforts to get her attention.
“I took my airpods out, and then … he was like, ‘Oh, I was just wondering if I could walk with you, because if I walk behind you, then I'm gonna be staring at your ass’,” she recalled the man saying.
She told the man she was going to be late for work, and continued walking, when the man — who was ahead of her at this point — made additional lewd comments.
“He yelled something along the lines of, because I'm going to be staring at her ass, and he yelled it loud, like it had got people's attention from across the road.”
The young woman said she told the man to “fuck off” at that point, and said he then walked towards the Common Roof building on Front Street.
She slowed her pace, unsure of whether the man was going to continue walking in front of her or not, but eventually passed him — and the man started following her.
“Once I continued walking, he came out behind me and started following me,” she said. “He was grabbing his cart and he came out behind me. I don't really know what he was saying, but he was talking about my butt.”
At this point, she called her boyfriend, and said the man stared at her for a while before making his way towards The Lighthouse shelter on Queen Street, as she continued her walk to work.
Ultimately, her boyfriend and his father attended The Lighthouse, where they claim they spotted the man using drugs in the parking lot. Police were contacted after a discussion with Lighthouse staff.
When police attended and spoke with the man, he was allowed to leave — to the frustration of the young woman's father.
“They let him leave,” said the father. “I said to the police officer, ‘What in the hell are you doing letting this guy leave without even going and talking to her to find out what happened?’”
Police also spoke with the young woman, and told the father there were no criminal grounds related to the incident.
Though she said she commonly sees unhoused people in the neighbourhood, this was the first time she had someone make lewd comments to her, noting the incident has made her “a little bit scared.”
“It made me a little bit nervous to walk to and from work,” she said.
When asked by OrilliaMatters, Orillia OPP Sgt. Matt Stoner confirmed all parties were spoken to, and that police determined there were no criminal grounds to lay charges.
When people run into situations like these, however, Stoner said there are steps they can take to ensure their safety.
“If somebody is causing a disturbance, they should contact the police to report it,” he said.
If intimidated by a situation on the street, Stoner encouraged people to keep moving.
“Walk on if you see something that you're intimidated by, (or) walk on the other side of the road. If something is said or done, please contact police. If you're being hindered or disturbed in any way, contact police,” he said.
“If it's nighttime, walk in lit areas. Walk with a friend.”
