WEST YORK — Police have charged a 55-year-old York man with stalking, harassment, and other offenses after they say he slept in a woman’s garage without her permission because “he wanted to feel close to her her and loved,” according to a criminal complaint affidavit.
Harry C. Roser, of the 100 block of Williams Street, is also charged with criminal trespassing and littering in the incident, which occurred on Jan. 10 at the West York residence of a female victim, West York Police allege.
According to police, the victim reported that she had been involved in a short-lived but intimate relationship with Roser — a relationship she had been trying unsuccessfully to end for several days prior to the incident. She showed police a series of text messages, purportedly between she and Roser, in which she clearly stated she did not want any further contact with him.
The victim told police she suspected Roser of entering her garage without her permission and sleeping in the loft, according to the criminal complaint. She said she found a pillow and sleeping bag in the garage, and believed that several items inside had been moved around.
After finding the sleeping bag, the victim told police, she spoke with Roser on the phone, and he allegedly admitted to sleeping in the garage. She also showed police text messages in which Roser alluded to staying in the garage.
The victim said Roser had since called her several times, but she did not answer most of the calls. She showed police more than 50 text messages that Roser had sent over the preceding day, the criminal complaint states.
The victim told police that because Roser was on her property without her permission, she was concerned for her safety and the safety of her child.
The victim provided police with Roser’s phone number, and police contacted him. Roser allegedly denied knowing the victim and denied her allegations. Police told him he would be receiving a harassment citation in the mail, and that any further contact with the victim would lead to more charges, according to the criminal complaint.
Roser allegedly asked police how he could fight the citation, and police advised him that directions on how to respond would be on the citation.
Later that day, the victim said, Roser texted her a message that said “see you in court,” according to the criminal complaint. Police said this contact occurred after officers had spoken to Roser and warned him not to contact the victim again.
Police say they were told Roser may have been at a West York bar and went to look for him there, according to the criminal complaint. They found Roser at the bar and took him into custody. Police say Roser admitted that he had slept in the victim’s garage, claiming “he wanted to feel close to her and loved,” the criminal complaint states.
Roser also gave police permission to search his cell phone, according to the criminal complaint. Police discovered the same text messages that had been provided to them by the victim, along with photos in the phone’s camera gallery that showed the victim’s car from inside the garage. The time stamps on the photos indicate the photos had been taken the night Roser is suspected of sleeping in the victim’s garage, police say.
