There has been a break in the case of a so-called "fondler" on the University of Miami campus.
Police have arrested 49-year-old Richard Sciandra for battery on a University of Miami co-ed near the Bank United Center.
Detectives believe Sciandra is the same man seen in surveillance pictures exposing himself, then grabbing a female student on the buttocks.
"It was disturbing, not only to the University, but to the police department. We have somebody preying on an innocent college student," said Kelly Denham with Coral Gables Police.
Police said it was a collective effort. A Miami Beach resident saw the alert and recognized Sciandra as the same man who assaulted her and her daughter in 2012.
"Contacted the detective in that case and went forward with identifying and locating where the subject lived," Denham explained.
Sciandra has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 1996, from marijuana possession to indecent exposure, sexual battery, and lewd and lascivious behavior.
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"You never know what the subject is going to escalate to. I believe because she fought back and confronted him, that this did not escalate," Denham said.
The feisty female was able to get away from Sciandra by screaming at him and using her purse to fight back. He was able to get away from police, until officers busted him near his Cutler Bay home.
"On Thanksgiving Day, they were able to call us and say, 'Hey, we got your man. You need to come down and get him,'" Denham said.
Sciandra bonded out of jail and now has an attorney.
