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PROVO — A man accused of groping two women on the BYU campus continued to maintain his innocence Thursday by pleading not guilty to the charges filed against him.
Nathan Eric Fletcher, 23, entered the not guilty pleas in 4th District Court to two counts of sexual battery, a class A misdemeanor, and requested that his case go before a jury trial.
Sixteen women say they were groped by a jogger earlier this year. Fletcher's charges, however, are based on just two incidents, on March 15 and March 19, because investigators did not find sufficient evidence to file charges in the other cases.
In a preliminary hearing last month, several members of BYU's track and field team testified they identified Fletcher in two clips of video footage — one that captures a jogger reaching out and touching a woman's chest, and another showing a jogger that fits the description of an assailant at a separate incident.
The team members say they could identify Fletcher, a former member of the team, based on the jogger's running style shown in the videos and because he appears to be wearing team-issued attire consistent with what Fletcher owned.
Several clothing items resembling what was shown in the video were seized by police from Fletcher's residence during the investigation.
Neither video, however, shows a clear picture of the jogger's face.
Defense attorneys say Fletcher had alibis for the March 15 and March 19 cases, arguing that he was running on other parts of the campus when the incidents occurred.
The two charges each carry a potential maximum sentence of one year in jail and a $2,500 fine. Email: mjacobsen@deseretnews.com Twitter: MorganEJacobsen; DNewsCrimeTeam
