Community college board candidate accused of exposing himself near child care center in Surprise

SURPRISE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) - Maricopa Community College Board GOP candidate Randy Kaufman suspended his campaign Tuesday after police said he was allegedly performing a sexual act on himself while parked in his car near a child care center at Rio Salado Colleges’ Surprise campus.

According to the incident report, on October 4th, a college police officer found Kaufman inside his truck, masturbating while watching something on his phone. Police say Kaufman’s truck was parked in full view of the Wirtzels Preschool and Child Care Center where children were playing outside on the playground.

Kaufman didn’t notice the officer at first, according to the report. The officer said once Kaufman saw the officer, he quickly covered himself up. The report said Kaufman apologized to the officer and said, “I f***** up. I’m really stressed.” Kaufman told the officer that he had been watching sexually explicit material on his phone and didn’t realize he was close to the preschool until after the officer confronted him at his truck.

Kaufman released a statement Tuesday afternoon confirming he will suspend his campaign.

The Arizona Republican Party released a statement Tuesday regarding Kaufman’s decision to suspend his campaign:

Police have forwarded the case to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for possible charges.

Copyright 2022 KTVK/KPHO. All rights reserved.