EPD: Man forcibly groped woman at bus station

An Evansville man accused of sexual battery was drunk Monday night when he reportedly assaulted a woman at a downtown bus station, according to city police.

Timothy Miles, 55, forced the woman to sit on a bench at the METS station on NW Sixth Street and then started groping her while she called for help, police said.

Another man standing nearby called 911 when he saw Miles holding the woman down on the bench, according to a probable cause affidavit.

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Evansville Police arrived around 7:45 p.m. and an officer reported seeing Miles standing over the woman. When Miles saw police, the affidavit states, he started walking away while buckling his belt.

The woman told police she knew Miles and has talked with him, but they were only acquaintances. He reportedly approached her at the METS station and forced her onto the bench after speaking to her and trying to put his arm around her. The witness confirmed her account of what happened.

Miles told police “I didn’t do anything wrong,” according to the affidavit, and would not say anything else.

Police say Miles’ blood alcohol level was 0.09 percent when they approached him at the bus station.

Miles was arrested on preliminary charges of sexual battery, public intoxication and criminal confinement. No formal charges were filed as of Wednesday morning.

His initial hearing is set for Friday in Vanderburgh Circuit Court. Miles was held in Vanderburgh County Jail with no bond set as of Wednesday morning.

Albion Fellows Bacon Center runs a crisis hotline for people who are victims of sexual assault at 812-424-7273. Anyone in immediate danger should call 911.