The man arrested after entering classes and touching women’s feet attended classes at the University during the fall and spring, a professor and students said.
Campus police arrested Christopher Deas, 35, on May 16 on three charges of assault on a female by unwanted touching of feet.
Alex Craig, a recent graduate, said she recognized him from her Topics in Comparative Religion class in fall 2010.
She said he sometimes spoke up in class and even gave a presentation.
“I just thought he was an older student,” Craig said.
Anne Blankenship, who taught Studies in American Religion in the spring, said she remembered seeing Deas in her class.
“He showed up maybe four times during the term, and I had a student who hadn’t shown up so I assumed it was him,” she said.
She said she realized after checking the photos on the class roster that Deas was not the student.
“He acted like an auditor,” Blankenship said.
A spokeswoman from the Office of the University Registrar said there is no record of Deas being a registered student.
Randy Young, spokesman for the Department of Public Safety, said the charges were based on incidents that occurred from March through May.
Young said other charges could be pending and a “substantial” number of individuals have come forward to report incidents.
He said Deas is from Asheboro and not affiliated with the University.
The case is not being treated as related to a string of home invasions in Chapel Hill earlier this year, where a man reportedly touched victims’ legs, Young said.
A spokeswoman for the Orange County Superior Court said Deas is scheduled to appear before a judge today.
Contact the University Editor at university@dailytarheel.com
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