A MAN who used his iPhone to take photos up a woman’s dress as she was shopping in Target has been convicted and fined in Bathurst Local Court.
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Jean Ricky Valsain, 29, of Hollis Lane, Perthville, appeared in person and unrepresented before magistrate Michael Allen charged with filming a person’s private parts.
Police facts tendered to the court told how Valsain entered Target in the Stocklands shopping complex on March 16 this year wearing earphones and carrying a black Apple iPhone 4.
At the same time, the victim and a friend were looking at vacuum cleaners in the homewares department. The victim was wearing a shortcut summer dress with a hem just above her knees.
Valsain approached the woman from behind and squatted behind her.
The court heard he then extended his right arm and held the iPhone in between the woman’s legs with the camera directed towards her groin area.
He took several photos, the police facts said.
A friend who was shopping with the woman saw what Valsain was doing and pulled her friend away.
The witness told Valsain she was going to call the police before moving to another aisle to talk to the victim about what had happened.
The witness told police that Valsain stood and watched her and the victim for a short time before leaving the store.
The woman spoke to staff at the store about the incident and they immediately called police, who reviewed CCTV footage from within the store and were able to identify Valsain.
About 30 minutes later they apprehended him as he entered a coffee shop in William Street.
Police asked Valsain to present his phone to them, but they were unable to locate any photos. Valsain told police he had deleted them.
Valsain was arrested and taken to Bathurst police station, where he made full admissions to taking the pictures.
Police asked him how many photos he took and he said “probably one or two”.
Police asked him if the victim’s underpants could be seen in the photos and he replied “yeah, probably”.
Police asked Valsain if he realised it was an offence to take photos up a woman’s skirt and he said “yep”. He then told police he deleted the images “because he knew it was wrong”.
On the charge of filming a person’s private parts, Mr Allen convicted Valsain and fined him $700.
Mr Allen put Valsain on a Section 9 Bond for 12 months.