San Francisco prosecutors have charged a male nudist known locally as “McGreasy” with indecent exposure and child molesting after he allegedly followed a group of teenage girls in the Castro.
Michael Watson, 35, is accused of masturbating in front of the teens, who were visiting an 18th Street boba shop, according to District Attorney Brooke Jenkins’ office, which filed charges Thursday. Watson faces three counts of indecent exposure with a prior conviction, three counts of annoying or molesting a child, and two counts of stalking.
Watson has a previous conviction for indecent exposure after illegally entering a dwelling, according to the Megan’s Law Website, a database that tracks registered sex offenders. He lives on Folsom Street, close to where police arrested him Monday.
The arrest came only after parents of the victims complained publicly about a lack of action from law enforcement. Parents and some of the teens talked to police Jan. 22 about two situations in which Watson’s alleged behavior made them uncomfortable.
“This was just a ‘no duh’ situation. Anybody with half a brain could look at this guy and look at this video and know that he should not be there,” said the father of a 14-year-old girl who recorded footage of Watson touching himself. The father asked not to be named for privacy reasons.
Video shot by the teens and reviewed by The Standard shows Watson masturbating in a stairwell in view of the victims. He appears to begin touching himself when they walk past him. In other clips and photos, he can be seen standing, erect penis visible, outside a boba shop window while the teens wait inside.
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Among the Castro’s business owners and nudist community, Watson is apparently considered to be an outsider who makes people uncomfortable with his behavior.
“We call him McGreasy,” said Terry Bennett, president of the Castro Merchants Association. “I think he has a lifetime supply of body oil.”
Bennett said Watson is regularly seen along Castro and 18th streets. He has been the subject of many complaints, but it seems that authorities have looked the other way because of the neighborhood’s high tolerance for nudity.
“We have really great naked people, but he is problematic,” Bennett said. “But nudity in San Francisco has been politically dangerous.”
Pete Sferra, a local nudist known for saving a tourist from a blowtorch-wielding attacker, said Watson is one of around a dozen men who frequent the neighborhood sans clothing. Sferra is “really bothered” by Watson’s body oil, which he sees as an attention-seeking ploy, and actions.
“I have absolutely no tolerance for anyone who would masturbate in front of children,” Sferra said. “It’s totally sick and should be dealt with in a very serious manner.”
“Keeping children and vulnerable community members safe is central to everything that we do in my office,” said Jenkins. “My office takes crimes like this seriously and will do everything we can to ensure that there is accountability and that there are consequences. The alleged conduct in this case is appalling and completely unacceptable.”
According to court documents, the middle school students have seen Watson on the same day each week for the past year; sometimes, he pours body oil on himself.
During his arraignment in San Francisco Superior Court Thursday, Watson pled not guilty to all counts of indecent exposure, child molestation and stalking.
Presiding judge Gerardo Sandoval ruled to detain Watson without bail ahead of his Feb. 21 preliminary hearing, pointing to seven prior convictions of indecent exposure between 2010 and 2023, five of which were felonies. Sandoval also ordered Watson to stay 150 yards away from Castro and 18th Streets and from two underage girls whose full names and ages were not mentioned in court.
“I find there is clear and convincing evidence that if we release him, there is a risk of harm to the public,” Sandoval said before issuing the stay-away and detention orders against Watson.
In 2023, Watson was convicted of indecent exposure in a similar incident, where he masturbated near a frozen yogurt shop in West Portal, according to Assistant District Attorney Tanisha Gooch. Gooch declined to comment further on Watson’s case.
Watson’s public defender, Ricardo Avila, asked the court to release Watson on their own recognizance because he lives away from the Castro, is employed, and is in compliance with his probation as a registered sex offender, but the judge denied Avila’s request.
Avila said he is unsure if Watson has any mental health diagnoses, saying more discovery is needed.
Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, whose district includes the Castro, said he has seen Watson in the neighborhood but didn’t know he was accused of masturbating in front of children until residents started raising concerns.
“I thought he was just another naked guy,” Mandelman said.