Cobb County

Man accused of exposing himself to women, teens inside metro mall

By Michele Newell
By Michele Newell

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Several women say a man exposed himself to them at Cumberland Mall.

Police arrested the suspect and say he targeted women in the mall’s food court.

A witness told Channel 2′s Michele Newell that he was ordering food when he saw the man continuously expose himself.

Shopper Wendy McLeod said she was shocked to learn what happened there.

“I’m very concerned about that. Concerned about crime in our area,” McLeod said. “I live close by, so I’m here about once a week, in and out.”

Police said Cedric Harrell approached several different women and exposed himself. Two of the victims are teenagers.

We’re told they were seen running away and screaming afterwards.

According to an arrest warrant, Harrell did the same thing to an elderly woman after the teenagers ran off.

A witness says he saw all of it happen within ten minutes, just as he was ordering food.

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Harrell is now in jail.

“As a woman, sometimes I don’t always feel safe,” McLeod said.

“It’s sad because we do have to protect our teenagers and our older people and women in general, because so much is going on today,” shopper Cynthia Brooks said.

Some shoppers told Newell that they feel there could be a deeper problem that should be addressed when they hear about incidents like this.

“I think it’s just a sad state we’re in right now. We are trying to identify between mental illness and just simple bad behavior, and I think that it’s crucial that we figure out the line and protect all of our citizens, especially females,” shopper Melvin Miller said.

“I think it’s very sad that so much mental health is going on out here today. A lot of people need to get some help,” Miller said.

Police charged Harrell with public indecency. Shoppers at the mall told Newell they would like to see more security in the area.

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