Man caught pleasuring himself whereas watching children in park earlier than dad and mom’ residents arrest

Parents carried out a citizen’s arrest on a man performing a grim sexual act while watching children in a park, a court has been told. The alert was raised by a delivery driver passing by who noticed Rene Cervenak peering through a hedge.

The suspect then attempted to lie his way out of the predicament by insisting he was urinating.

Following the citizen’s arrest by parents, the accused was escorted to the nearest police station. In a victim impact statement read to Cardiff Crown Court one of the mothers who apprehended Cervenak said she was still struggling to process the reality that someone had been observing her young daughter and “trying to steal her innocence”, adding she was concerned that there are individuals who “see our children as targets and who want to harm them”.

Denise Osei, prosecuting, told the court that the incident occurred during summer 2025 at Hamadryad Park in Cardiff Bay while young children were playing in the area. She explained that a delivery rider witnessed a man – later identified as Cervenak – peering into the park through a gap in the hedge with his genitals exposed while performing a sexual act, according to Wales Online.

The courier warned adults in the park about the behaviour, and the rider along with several parents then challenged the accused. The court was told Cervenak claimed he was merely “having a pee”.

The prosecutor said several parents then carried out a citizen’s arrest on the 28-year-old accused and escorted him to nearby Cardiff Bay police station where they handed him over to officers. Cervenak was arrested and his phone was confiscated, along with his clothing which was sent for forensic analysis.

The court heard that when officers examined the defendant’s phone they discovered 100 pictures of “babies and young children” but that the images were not the subject of any charges.

During his interview Cervenak provided a prepared statement in which he denied the offences and claimed he had only been relieving himself while on his way to go fishing. The court heard that later tests discovered semen on the defendant’s trousers.

In a statement read to the court by the prosecution barrister, the mother who had confronted the defendant said she was still struggling to come to terms with the fact that someone had been watching her young daughter and “trying to steal her innocence”.

Defence lawyer Adam Sharp said his client was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2015, and between 2016 and 2018, he was sectioned four times under the Mental Health Act.

Judge Christopher Felstead said the impact of the offence was evident from the victim statement presented to the court. He noted that while Cervenak had expressed remorse for his actions in the pre-sentence report, there were “inconsistencies” in his account.

The judge stated he was inclined to largely follow the recommendations in the report.

Taking into account his guilty plea, Cervenak was given a 24-month community order and must complete a rehabilitation requirement and a drug rehabilitation requirement. He was also fined £250.

For the next five years, the defendant will be a registered sex offender.