KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A man arrested Friday on false imprisonment charges was banned from the University of Tennessee's campus for "suspicious behavior" in 2018 and was involved in an incident that prompted a campus-wide alert for an attempted abduction earlier this year, police records indicate.
Knoxville Police said Tylar Johnson, 28, pulled up to a woman while she was with coworkers around the Old City area in downtown Knoxville on the afternoon of June 15. As she tried to get into her car, police said Johnson pulled up next to the driver's side door and asked her "if she wanted money."
The victim refused, and police said Johnson continued asking her forcefully. He also started demanding her to get into the passenger side of his car, according to police.
The incident continued until a person intervened, which gave the woman a chance to get into her car and close the door. Johnson stayed parked near her car, not allowing it to move, according to authorities.
The woman picked up her phone as if to call 911 when he drove away on Central Street and began speaking with the woman's coworkers. She then drove up behind Johnson and blew the horn. He then drove away, according to police.
Anyone who had a similar encounter with him should contact Detective Brandon Wardlaw via email at bwardlaw@knoxvilletn.gov.
Previous incidents
In late January Johnson was named in a police report, but never charged, for an incident involving a 19-year-old University of Tennessee student he picked up near a house party in the Fort Sanders neighborhood.
Police found them hours later and said the victim's pants were unbuttoned and her shirt pulled up over her bra. They said she was so intoxicated she couldn't remember what happened.
Police said Johnson drove her more than 20 miles away to Grainger County. The incident led the UT to notify students about reports of an abduction.
The UTPD incident report said the victim's friend used the "iPhone locator app" to help police track them down.
According to reports, Johnson told officers he was leaving a different party and noticed the woman stumbling around in the road. He said he picked her up and drove her around the UT area and then to Blaine, Tennessee, but claimed he did not take her into his home.
He said he did not initiate any physical contact with her, but claimed she jumped into his lap while he was driving on Rutledge Pike, according to the report.
According to reports, the 19-year-old said she didn't think she was sexually abused and refused medical treatment. Johnson was not charged in that incident.
Campus security officials said Johnson was previously banned from the UT campus in 2018 for "suspicious behavior."
After the latest incident, Johnson was booked into the Knox County jail and KPD said he is "suspected of committing similar acts on several other occasions throughout the area."
KPD reports Johnson was involved in another incident at a gas station in May, police are still investigating.
Investigators ask anyone who had a similar encounter with Johnson to contact Detective Brandon Wardlaw via email at bwardlaw@knoxvilletn.gov
Self defense experts recommend having a plan and a backup plan when going out, especially if alcohol is involved.
"Know your limits and stick to those limits." said KPD spokesperson Scott Erland "Always make sure that you're not going past that limit where you can no longer make responsible decisions."
In the Grainger County incident, police said the friend checking the location made the difference.
"That's somebody looking out for one another," Erland said. "Making sure that they're okay."