Lakshya Yadav, an 18-year-old UF student, was arrested Wednesday on charges of sexual assault.
Yadav and the victim met on Snapchat in September. They went on to meet twice in person, and the victim considered him a friend, according to the arrest report.
On Sept. 18, the two had been communicating throughout the day, and Yadav was drinking with friends. According to the arrest report, he made a sexual comment to the victim, who said they felt weird, and the two didn’t talk much in the following hours.
Later that night, Yadav said he wanted to visit the victim's apartment. The victim declined, but he said he was 10 minutes away and would stop by. The victim again said they didn’t want him to come over.
According to the arrest report, Yadav arrived at the victim’s apartment a few minutes later. The victim said he appeared drunk and smelled like alcohol. They said they let him in because they were worried about him driving. The victim tried to give him water to help him sober up, but he refused.
Yadav then laid in the victim’s bed and suggested they watch a movie. They watched part of the movie before he said he didn’t want to anymore and told the victim to play music. According to the arrest report, he then got on top of the victim and kissed them, and they tried to stop him.
The situation escalated to forced sexual acts, according to the arrest report.
The victim was able to get him to stop, and he left shortly after.
The victim reported the incident to the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office Oct. 1. The investigator found injuries consistent with the victim’s story, according to the arrest report.
Yadav was arrested Wednesday on UF campus in his dorm parking lot.
He was charged with one count of sexual battery and booked into Alachua County Jail.
The UF Police Department issued Yadav a trespass warning Thursday, according to UF spokesperson Cynthia Roldán. He is barred from campus for three years.
Contact Teia Williams at twilliams@alligator.org. Follow her on X @teia_williams.
Teia Williams is a journalism senior at UF and the Fall 2026 criminal justice reporter. This is her fourth semester with The Alligator. If she isn't writing an article, you can find her at a concert, reading a book or somewhere soaking up the sun.
