A Villager was arrested after allegedly inappropriately touching a woman who was resurfacing his driveway.
Thomas Donald Vermeulen, 71, was arrested on a felony charge of battery Friday at his home at 543 Troy Loop in the Village of Mallory Square.
He had hired a concrete business to resurface his driveway. Vermeulen approached a woman who was on break, seated in pickup truck and eating, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. He “made small talk” about a cookie the woman was eating. He placed his hand on her inner thigh and told her, “I like cookies, too.” She was wearing shorts and his hand touched her skin. Later she was in the garage with Vermeulen obtaining some information from him, when he used his thumb to wipe a “little dust” from her lip.
She told a co-worker what had happened, but also said she was embarrassed.
She later made a report to the sheriff’s office. A criminal history check revealed Vermeulen had been convicted of assault in 1977 in Macomb County, Michigan and in 1995 he was convicted of aggravated assault in Oakland County, Michigan.
Vermeulen was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $2,000 bond.