Arrested, released, dismissed: Serial groping suspect finally detained after latest attack

A 29-year-old man with a history of arrests for assaulting women is now in custody after prosecutors dropped previous cases filed against him.

Hassan Flowers, 36, was arrested on July 4 in Rogers Park after a 49-year-old woman reported that he had grabbed her breast near Clark Street and Pratt Boulevard. Flowers was detained by officers after the woman flagged them down, and he admitted to the offense, according to court records.

During Flowers’ detention hearing, Assistant State’s Attorney John Meacham shared that Flowers apologized to the woman, claiming, “I thought you smelled good.” He also expressed his intention to continue touching women, stating, “I’m just going to go around and keep touching women.”

Meacham also detailed Flowers’ criminal history, which includes convictions for kidnapping with bodily harm in 2014 and aggravated battery in a public place in 2019.

Judge James Murphy III, upon hearing the prosecutor’s statements, decided to detain Flowers based on his recent actions and his admission of intent to continue assaulting women.

Further investigation revealed that Flowers had faced additional sex offense-related arrests earlier in the year, which were subsequently dropped. This prompted a closer look into the cases that were dismissed.

Series of Dropped Cases

Records indicate that Flowers’ arrest on July 4 followed a pattern of incidents where charges were filed against him but later dropped by prosecutors.

On March 15, Flowers was arrested for allegedly groping a 19-year-old DePaul University student inside a CVS. Shortly after, he was arrested again, this time for indecent behavior at Loyola University and for assaulting a woman in Edgewater. Charges in both cases were eventually dropped.

In June, Flowers was arrested for similar offenses, but misdemeanor charges were dropped in July. The felony case from July 4 remains pending.

Despite multiple arrests and complaints from women, the reasons for the dismissal of charges in Flowers’ cases remain unclear as the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office did not provide a response to inquiries.

Sourcing: This report is based on official court transcripts of Flowers’ detention hearing, obtained through the support of CWBChicago readers.

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