USAC officer arrested on charges of false imprisonment
By Daily Bruin
April 2, 2014 7:08 p.m.
This post was updated April 3 at 5:10 p.m.
An undergraduate student council member was arrested by university police Wednesday on a charge of false imprisonment.
On Wednesday, a female student reported a series of sexual batteries between October and March. The report led to 21-year-old Omar Arce’s arrest, according to a police report released Thursday afternoon.
UCPD arrested Arce, the Undergraduate Students Association Council Community service commissioner and a fourth-year international development studies student, at 10:47 a.m. Wednesday and transported him to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department in West Hollywood.
Arce was booked about 11:30 a.m. on $50,000 bail. He is currently being held at the Men’s Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles.
False imprisonment is defined as restraining another person. Under the definition, a person can be restrained by a physical barrier, such as a locked door, a physical force, failing to release an individual or an invalid use of legal authority.
(Courtesy of USAC)
The case is under investigation, and police cannot comment further at this time, said UCPD spokeswoman Nancy Greenstein.
Savannah Badalich, the USAC student wellness commissioner, said she thinks it is important to be supportive of the student who submitted the report’s decision to remain anonymous. Badalich is the founder of 7,000 in Solidarity, a sexual assault education, advocacy and research campaign on campus.
USAC President John Joanino said he plans to work with leadership in the Community Service Commission to ensure that the office continues to run.
“The most important thing for me is realizing that the work that his commission has done should not be tainted by his actions as an individual,” Joanino said. “What he is accused of should not be a reflection of his commission and the work it does.”
The USAC Office of the President released a statement Wednesday night regarding Arce’s arrest.
Arce is set to appear at the Los Angeles Superior Court Airport Courthouse on Friday at 4 p.m.
Anyone with information about this case can call Det. Richard Davis at (310) 825-9371. To report anonymously, call (310) 794-5824.
Compiled by Sam Hoff and Yael Levin, Bruin senior staff. Contributing reports by Jillian Beck, Bruin senior staff.
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