Randy Gene Kaufman suspended his campaign for Maricopa County college board after allegedly being caught pleasuring himself in his truck close to a school.
A GOP candidate running for an Arizona college district’s governing board was arrested (October 4) on a charge of public sexual indecency, after an officer allegedly caught him “manipulating his genitals” in his truck near a preschool.
Kaufman, who back in May shared a post to Facebook about keeping “our children protected [from] the progressive left”, is reportedly a big Trump supporter made various statements about the “godless” Democratic Party.
“We are locked in an ideological war with the Godless/ progressive/ left-wing/ Marxist/ Democratic Party. These people are working towards nothing less than a totalitarian government they control. Not only do they seek to control our country but our state.” he wrote in one post.
Kaufman suspended his campaign 14 days later, on Tuesday (October 18), following media reports of his arrest.
Rolling Stone reports, per an obtained affidavit, that at around 4.30pm, a Maricopa County police officer noticed a Ford F-150 parked across three spaces with a shade screen across the front windshield.
The officer wrote that he approached the car and: “[Kaufman] appeared to be looking at a cell phone in one hand,” the police report said. “I immediately became alarmed as I saw [Kaufman] had his pants down mid-thigh and was exposed showing his fully erect nude penis. [Kaufman] was manipulating his genitals in a masturbatory manner.”
Kaufman was reportedly so preoccupied by his actions that he failed to notice the officer at his passenger side door, forcing said officer to move around to the drivers’ site to get his attention.
The officer noted that the car was parked “with a full view of the Wirtzels Preschool and Child Care Center,” about 190 feet away, and that he saw “several preschool age children having outdoor activities in the playground,” as well as vehicles passing within 10 feet of the car.
Once removing himself from the vehicle, Kaufman reportedly insisted that he doesn’t normally do this.
“I fucked up,” Kaufman told an officer during his arrest, according to a police report.
“I’m just really stressed out. I have a lot of things going on,”
When asked if he knew he was so close to a preschool he responded, “I didn’t notice it until you came up and I got out of my truck.”
“I’m running for the Governing Board for the colleges”, he reportedly then told the officer. “I didn’t even know this was one of your sites but now I see the signs all over in the parking lot.”
Kaufman told police he worked as an officer with the Arizona Department of Corrections for 27 years and insisted he didn’t know there was a preschool just feet away.
“Are you going to put that in the report?” the officer said Kaufman asked.
“Don’t you see how alarming that is?” the officer responded, according to the report. “That there are children nearby, people passing on bikes and in cars where they can look and see what you are doing?”
Kaufman was subsequently charged with public sexual indecency, but news reports suggest he could also face a possible felony charge because of his proximity to the preschool.
Kaudman issued a statement about suspending his campaign – for which he cannot be fully removed from the ballot as they already opened, and some people voted early – but did not mention anything about the arrest.
He did say that he “will never stop fighting to protect the United States Constitution and the values that make America the greatest country in the world.”
While his opponent, Kelli Butler, tweeted to say she found the allegations “extremely troubling.”
My statement on the breaking news related to the Maricopa Community College District Governing Board race. READ ⬇️ https://t.co/gh4TBjrf7B pic.twitter.com/hJEgiw9qhh
— Kelli Butler (@KelliButlerAZ) October 18, 2022
This Arizona GOP candidate — Randy Kaufman — was arrested for masturbating in his truck — near a preschool.
He’s still on the ballot. And may win.
We might be doomed… https://t.co/SiFl28Lyxc
— Rex Chapman🏇🏼 (@RexChapman) October 19, 2022