Parents get letters after indecent exposure

After a man was arrested for exposing himself to three girls playing across the street from St. Michael’s Catholic School in Grand Forks, the principal sent a letter home with students Tuesday.

According to the letter, police suggest that parents tell their children about the risks of interacting with strangers. “If a stranger calls to a child, please tell the child to run in the other direction or to a known adult,” the letter says.

On Aug. 15, the three girls, ages 8 to 9, were in a parking lot across the street from the school, at the corner of Fifth Avenue North and North Fifth Street, when a man exposed himself to them.

Asked if the girls were students at the school, Principal Stephanie Schuster declined to comment, but said school was not in session at the time.

One of the girls wrote down the license-plate number of the vehicle the man was driving, which led police to Michael Novak Jr., who admitted to exposing himself to the girls, court documents say.

Novak, 28, of East Grand Forks, appeared in court Monday on charges of indecent exposure and solicitation of a minor. He was released on bail Monday night. No phone number was listed for him.

He’s set for a preliminary hearing Sept. 29.

Ingersoll reports on crime and courts. Reach him at (701) 780-1269; (800) 477-6572, ext. 269; or send e-mail to aingersoll@gfherald.com.

Tags: daily updates, crime and courts, gf and egf, north dakota, news, crime, church