ALACHUA, Fla. – Robert James Lockard, 22, was arrested yesterday after authorities said he sexually battered a girl who was between 12 and 16 years old.
According to an Alachua Police Department detective, the incident was reported to have happened on September 3, when the girl waited for her parent to fall asleep before leaving home and walking to Lockard’s apartment after messaging him.
The detective wrote that the girl already knew Lockard and that he was “explicitly” aware of her age.
After she arrived at the apartment, Lockard allegedly gave her marijuana, which both of them smoked, before he began kissing her and then sexually battered her. The girl reportedly told the detective that afterward, they watched a show and fell asleep. She had set an alarm so she could return home before her parent woke up, and she said Lockard told her to text him once she made it home safely.
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The detective also reported that the girl’s phone contained a communication history between her and Lockard on Instagram and Snapchat.
The detective also reported that APD collected the unwashed undergarments the victim had worn during the incident, and those will be submitted to forensic and DNA analysis.
Lockard has been charged with lewd or lascivious battery on a person between the ages of 12 and 16. He has no criminal convictions but is currently facing a Notice to Appear for driving without a valid license. Judge Meshon Rawls ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s Office to hold him without bail until trial; if the judge denies the motion, bail will be set at that hearing. Judge Rawls also ordered him to have no contact with minors.