Staff report
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Phillip Williamson, 67, was arrested yesterday in connection with the alleged sexual battery of a 16-year-old girl who was sleeping at a bus stop in September.
The girl contacted police on November 6 after spotting Williamson at the Rosa Parks Transfer Station. She told officers that he had sexually battered her two months earlier.
According to the victim, her grandmother had forced her to leave home, prompting her to sleep at a bus stop near the Walmart at 1800 NE 12th Avenue. She said she was lying on the floor beneath a sheet when Williamson reached behind her during the night and touched her beneath her underwear without permission. The girl told him to stop, and she said he immediately did so. She also recalled that he smelled of alcohol.
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After being read his Miranda rights, Williamson reportedly acknowledged being homeless and remembered the encounter at the bus stop. He told investigators that he had moved to Gainesville from Orlando about four months earlier and sometimes slept “anywhere in the city” when he was intoxicated. Williamson said he had been drinking on the night in question and “leaned” beside the victim. He claimed she asked him to touch her buttocks, leading him to place his hand inside her underwear, and said he did not know she was 16.
Williamson, a registered homeless sexual offender whose listed address is GRACE Marketplace, faces a charge of sexual battery involving a victim between the ages of 12 and 18. His complete criminal history was not available because the records are not posted on weekends. However, records show that he has served 10 state prison sentences from Collier, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach and Lee counties. He was most recently released in 2022. Williamson was classified as a sexual offender in 1999 after being convicted of lewd or lascivious assault involving a child under 12.
Judge Denise Ferrero ordered Williamson held without bail while the State Attorney’s Office seeks to keep him jailed through trial. If that request is denied, the judge will determine bail at the hearing.
Arrest articles are based on reports provided by law enforcement agencies. The charges described come from arrest reports and/or court records and represent allegations only. Every defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
