WEST MELBOURNE, Fla. – A Brevard County technician is accused of trying to sexually force himself onto a woman in her home during a service call on Monday.
Devon Bell, 59, was arrested Tuesday in connection with the attempted sexual battery at the West Melbourne home, police said.
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Bell, who had worked with AT&T as a technician for about 7 months, was called to a customer’s house around 1:49 p.m. on Monday to help fix her internet problems, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Police said he told the victim when he was 10 minutes out, to which she replied he could come by any time before she needed to pick up her daughter at the bus stop.
When Bell arrived, the victim explained the router was in her bedroom and the technician followed her in there, adding “he could tell that girls live there,” the affidavit shows.
According to officers, Bell then asked the woman to sit on the bed, which she refused, before he groped her breast and told her “he wanted to ‘jump her bones.’” She continued to tell him she needed to leave the house soon, police said.
The victim also told officers the technician “was very aggressive with her and inappropriate, and definitely not what she expected from all the money she has paid AT&T over the last 18 years,” the affidavit reads.
Police said Bell then hugged the victim, after which she started recording him “talking to her sexually” on her cell phone.
Upon interviewing the suspect, police said he denied any inappropriate sexual contact with the customer until officers showed him the victim’s cell phone recording. Bell added “he was no creep or rapist,” police said.
Bell faces charges for attempted sexual battery, burglary with a battery and false imprisonment and battery. He is being held in the Brevard County jail on a $52,500 bond.
An AT&T spokesperson released the following statement in response to the arrest.
“We are deeply disturbed by these horrific allegations. The trust that our customers place in us is critical to what we do. We screen, hire and train employees to uphold that trust. This employee has clearly violated our standards of conduct and has been terminated. Our thoughts are with the victim, and we are assisting law enforcement with their investigation.”
AT&T
“We are deeply disturbed by these horrific allegations. The trust that our customers place in us is critical to what we do. We screen, hire and train employees to uphold that trust. This employee has clearly violated our standards of conduct and has been terminated. Our thoughts are with the victim, and we are assisting law enforcement with their investigation.”
Anyone who has experienced similar encounters with Bell is asked to contact their local police department for help.
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