Photo: Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
A Pennsylvania man was arrested after police claimed he "sexually molested" a manatee mannequin during a drunken disturbance at a seafood restaurant. A criminal complaint obtained by The Smoking Gun said the strange incident happened at Rick's Reef in St. Petersburg on Friday evening (December 8).
Authorities allege Anthony Michael Lessa, a 23-year-old from Pittsburgh, slung "gator nuggets" inside the eatery while intoxicated. When restaurant employees confronted Lessa about his behavior, that's when he "became belligerent" and focused his attention on the shirt-wearing manatee, according to the report.
Cops said Lessa started to "sexually molest" the mannequin in front of customers and restaurant staff before fleeing the establishment. He ended up causing another scene at a nearby hotel he was staying at, where Lessa hurled insults at a front desk worker and belted curse words in the parking lot, deputies wrote.
When officials spoke with the suspect, he exhibited several signs of intoxication, including a strong odor of alcohol and dilated pupils, the complaint reads. Lessa repeatedly asked deputies why he was being arrested, as well.
He was booked into jail for a misdemeanor count of disorderly intoxication-disturbance. Online jail records say he was released from custody Saturday morning (December 9).