Lang
9/20/23
A transient caught masturbating near the Pentacrest has reached plea deals in unrelated theft and assault cases.
28-year-old Davee Ceya is accused of giving a false name to staff while he was being treated at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics last May. Ceya had hoped he could avoid paying $12,200 in medical bills. He was later arrested and charged with 1st Degree Theft.
On June 13th, Ceya was given a 270 day suspended sentence and one year of probation after pleading guilty to an Indecent Exposure charge. He must also appear on the Iowa Sex Offender Registry for ten years. On the morning of May 11th, witnesses reported seeing Ceya masturbating on a bench on the southeast corner of the Pentacrest with several other people sitting around him.
Upon leaving the Johnson County Courthouse after receiving his suspended sentence, Ceya allegedly spit at another subject outside the Harrison Street parking ramp and punched him in the face over a dozen times. The man suffered multiple injuries. Ceya was charged with Assault Causing Bodily Injury. Charges of Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Contraband in a Correctional Facility were added after marijuana was reportedly found inside Ceya’s underwear at the Johnson County Jail.
Online records show Ceya reached a plea deal with prosecutors in both pending cases on Monday. Terms of the deal and a sentencing date have not been released. If convicted on the original charges, Ceya could have been sentenced to up to 17 years in prison.