Pastor: Sex offender's arrest at fair could have stemmed from miscommunication
A man who described himself as the religious adviser of a sex offender arrested at the North Carolina State Fair described the incident Tuesday as "perplexing" and "highly out of character."
Posted — Updated"I've known him for 11 years," the pastor countered. "He's not the kind of person that would flat out lie to someone. He's got a lot of integrity."
The pastor mentioned that Szabo also has problems with hearing and could have misunderstood when parents or police approached him.
Szabo's hearing difficulty was apparent at his court appearance Wednesday afternoon, where the judge had to continually repeat himself to be heard.
The North Carolina Department of Labor sent an alert Wednesday through midway operator Powers Great American Amusement to all ride operators asking them to be on the lookout for impostor ride inspectors after Szabo's arrest.
Official inspectors, the NDOL said, wear logoed clothing and carry credentials to identify themselves.
Brian Long, a spokesman for the North Carolina Department of Agriculture which runs the fair, called Szabo's arrest a prime example of teamwork between the public and law enforcement.
"Those folks did the right thing, and they alerted law enforcement, and law enforcement stepped in and the guy is gone," he said.
Harrison said two Highway Patrol officers approached Szabo after noticing that he had Mace in his possession.
After his hearing Wednesday, the judge returned him to the Wake County jail where he was being held under a $250,000 bond.
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