David Neilsen
LODI, CALIFORNIA – An outspoken activist for Lodi’s gay community is in jail on suspicion of molesting a teenage boy.
Authorities arrested 49-year-old David Neilsen on Tuesday evening after a 16-year-old boy accused the chef and community leader of sexual misconduct, said Cpl. Dale Eubanks of the Lodi Police Department. The accusations first surfaced in June, said Eubanks, and the victim alleges the abuse took place from February through May of this year.
Police seized a home computer and Neilsen’s cellphone after arresting him in the 200 block of North Ham Lane, Eubanks said. The devices will be examined for evidence such as emails or text messages, police said.
Neilsen, who was nominated for Citizen of the Year in Lodi in 2006, has been the subject of profile stories in The Record for his work rallying neighbors against Lodi’s gang element and his efforts with the Lodi Rainbow Project, which promotes education and understanding for the city’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.
He is being held in lieu of a $213,000 bond and could face charges of oral copulation and sexual penetration of a minor.
Investigators are searching for other possible victims.
from The Record
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