SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – A Seminole County man who installs surveillance systems for a living placed hidden cameras in his ex-girlfriend's home, including in her adult daughter's bedroom, according to the arrest report.
The victim called the Seminole County Sheriff's Office on Aug. 8 after her daughter found a pinhole camera on her TV in her bedroom. Deputies said the victims were out of town from for less than a week at the end of July, and the camera was found on Aug. 4 after they came home.
When the woman found the camera and gave it to her mother, they asked James West about it because he was at the home working on a fish tank. He denied knowing anything about it, according to the report. West, 49, lived at the home for a time but moved out in February, his ex-girlfriend told deputies.
On Sept. 10, the victim told deputies she found another camera in her bathroom. A third camera was found in another bedroom, according to the report. Video on the microSD card captured both victims showering and in the bathroom, deputies said. The other camera also recorded West setting up the camera in the girl's bedroom, according to the report.
"The victim was able to say, 'Yes, the person in that video is this suspect and based on those factors we were able to bring these charge," Seminole County Sheriff's Office public information officer Bob Kealing said.
All the victims captured by the cameras are adults, Kealing said.
Deputies subpoenaed Amazon.com and found that West had purchased an AOBO Spy Camera, the same type of camera found in the victim's bathroom, on July 23.
Kealing said West was able to access the footage captured on the hidden cameras through an app on his phone.
West was arrested at his Longwood home and charged with three counts of video voyeurism. He posted $6,000 bail from the John E. Polk Correctional Facility.
West works for an Orlando-based company called HLE Systems, according to the report. Detectives asked anyone who came in to contact with West's service and has concerns or questions to call the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office at 407-665-6650.
"If we find out there are other victims then the chances are very good that more charges will follow," Kealing said.