Patrick Frame Arrested for Indecent Exposure on City Bus

Patrick Frame is accused of masturbating in front of two children under age 10.

Phoenix police have arrested a man who they say was captured on video masturbating as he rode a Valley Metro bus on the Fourth of July. It happened about 8:30 pm as the bus traveled along Cactus Rd. near 26th St.

Detectives say 46-year-old Patrick Frame exposed himself and was masturbating on the bus in front of a 9-year-old girl and 5-year-old boy. Police say he was doing it in plain sight of not only the children, but also several adults on the bus, including the children's mother. Adults who saw what was going on stopped the man and tried to hold him for police, but he got away before officers arrived.

Using the video captured by the bus' cameras, including a conversation that he had on the bus, as well as witness statements, detectives concluded the man may live in the area of Paradise Valley Mall. On the morning of July 16, transit officers went to the "transit center" outside the mall to see if they could find him. When they arrived, officers immediately saw a man sitting on a bench waiting for a bus who resembled the man in the video.

As they got closer, the officers noted the man was wearing the same distinctive t-shirt as the suspect in the video, and concluded he was the man they were seeking. As he started boarding a bus, they approached him and asked him if they could talk to him. They took him to police headquarters, where he was interviewed and subsequently arrested.

Frame was booked for two felony counts of indecent exposure, two felony counts of public sexual indecency, as well as misdemeanor counts of indecent exposure and public sexual indecency.

Police pointed out that criminal activity on buses is very rare, and that 1 to 2 percent of the riders are likely responsible for 90 percent of the crime. Detectives added that they don't have any reason to believe that Frame may have done the same thing on any other occasions, but they will be reviewing police reports and sharing the information with other police agencies in the Valley.