UPDATE: Man accused of posing as massage therapist on movie set charged with misdemeanor assaults

COOPERSVILLE -- On the set of "Touchback," police allege twice-convicted sex offender Timothy Ketchapaw was doing too much touching.

Ottawa County sheriff's deputies arrested the 39-year-old Grand Rapids man on accusations that he was posing as a massage therapist and giving free rubdowns last week to women participating in an all-night filming of the movie starring Kurt Russell.

Part of the film was being shot at Coopersville High School, an area that is off-limits to Ketchapaw as a registered sex offender.

Police said several women were suspicious of Ketchapaw and called film security with their concerns.

Security workers kicked him out of the production area, but police said the man continued to circle the parking lot on Aug. 18.

Court records show Ketchapaw was arraigned by video in Hudsonville District Court the next day. He posted a $5,000 cash bond and was released pending future hearings.

Misdemeanor assault charges may be filed as well, authorities said.

At his Northeast Side house Monday night, Ketchapaw said he was a paid extra on the movie set and that he did nothing wrong. He declined further comment until he met with his lawyer Tuesday.

Ketchapaw pleaded guilty to accosting children for immoral purposes in 1997, records show.

A Kent County Circuit Court judge later ordered Ketchapaw to serve between one day and life in prison for convictions for being a sexually delinquent person and indecent exposure. State records show he served about six years before being paroled in May 2006.

If convicted of violating the school safety zone -- state law prohibits sex offenders from being within 1,000 feet of schools -- Ketchapaw faces up to four years in prison.

Court records show Ketchapaw in 2007 pleaded guilty to living within the safety zone. The court required him to move as part of his sentence.

At the time of his arrest last week, Ketchapaw was listed by the state sex offender registry as being compliant with the rules.

Ketchapaw is the son of John Ketchapaw, who committed suicide in the Ottawa County Jail in 2007. The elder Ketchapaw was serving a sentence for illegal fireworks distribution when he died.

-- Press staff writerNate Reens contributed to this report.

E-mail the author of this story: localnews@grpress.com

