NOVEMBER 12--A Florida man today pleaded not guilty to charges that he took a stuffed animal from a Walmart shelf and used the item while masturbating in the housewares section of the store.

Sean Johnson, 19, entered his plea during an arraignment this morning in Hernando County Court. Johnson is facing misdemeanor indecent exposure and criminal mischief charges in connection with the October 14 incident at a Walmart in Brooksville, a city 50 miles north of Tampa.

Investigators allege that Johnson, who is free on $1500 bond, “selected a brown, tan, and red stuffed horse from the clearance shelf in the garden department” and walked to the comforter aisle in the housewares section, where he “proceeded to pull out his genitals.”

According to a police report, Johnson “proceeded to hump the stuffed horse utilizing short fast movements.” After Johnson “achieved an orgasm and ejaculated on the stuffed horse’s chest area,” he placed the “soiled stuffed horse on top of a bed in a bag (comforter set) contaminating that property also.”

Walmart security cameras recorded Johnson’s interaction with the stuffed horse, which is seen in the above police evidence photo.

Johnson, seen at left, fled the store, but was later collared across the street by Brooksville Police Department cops, to whom he reportedly confessed. “I did unmentionables to a stuffed animal,” Johnson wrote in statement describing what he termed a “horrible act.” He added, “I need to think before what I do. I’m extremely sorry.”

Johnson, who hung up on a reporter when he was reached this morning on his cell phone, is scheduled for a December 11 pretrial hearing, according to court records.

The soiled stuffed horse and the comforter set were deemed contaminated and unsuitable for sale. (2 pages)