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Man Accused Of Exposing Himself Near Washington Heights Playgrounds

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A man has been arrested and charged with exposing himself and committing lewd acts in front of children at playgrounds in Washington Heights.

Fransisco Santana, 55, of Wards Island, has been charged with public lewdness for allegedly masturbating in a public space, police said.

He was seen on Oct. 31 in Bennett Park, on 183rd Street between Fort Washington and Pinehurst avenues, on Oct. 31, police said. The man also has been seen at J. Hood Wright Park, at Fort Washington Avenue near 175th Street, where he was arrested Friday, according to a New York Daily News report.

Santana is disabled, and has been seen pushing a wheelchair decorated an American flag, the newspaper reported.

Police launched a search for Santana after complaints on a Yahoo Group about a man with a wheelchair exposing himself inside the park this past summer, the newspaper reported.

Police said they believed Santana was the man parents were complaining about, but said the charges were not related to their recent complaints, the paper reported.

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