HIDDEN CAMERA IN NEWSPAPER BATHROOM
By David Noack
Friday, March 6 1998
Friday, March 6 1998
Published on AllBusiness.com
Bathroom Camera
It and 29 Video Cassettes Seized by Sheriff
Tipped off by an anonymous source, sheriff's deputies in Franklin County, Fla., on Monday seized a video camera concealed in the ceiling of The Apalachicola Times' unisex bathroom. They also seized 29 video tape cassettes.
John Fred Lee, the general manager of the 1,150-circulation newspaper located on the state's northwest Gulf Coast, said the camera was part of a larger video surveillance network installed as an anti-theft measure.
Lt. Michael Moore of the sheriff's department said there were three to four cameras inside the newspaper's offices, all transmitting to a monitor and VCR recorder in Lee's office. Controls at the monitor allowed a viewer to switch among the different cameras to see various building locations. One of the cameras was hidden in the bathroom, directly above the toilet used by male and female employees.
Camouflaged Toilet Camera
Moore said the bathroom camera was "camouflaged in such a way that if you did not know what you were looking at, you would not know what it was."
Moore said he received a tip about the bathroom camera on February 23. After inspecting the bathroom, Moore said he contacted the State Attorney's office to request a search warrant.
Shortly after sheriff's officers completed their Monday search of the newspaper's offices, seized equipment, and announced an ongoing investigation of Lee, five female employees walked off their jobs. They included a Times reporter, an ad saleswoman, the bookkeeper, a receptionist, and the production manager. Some of the former employees are reported to be meeting with an attorney to explore a possible civil lawsuit.
It is not known if any of the 29 confiscated video cassettes contain images recorded from the bathroom camera. Lt. Moore said his office expected to complete a review of all the tapes as early as today.
"Right now we are in the preliminary phase of the investigation. The first step was to secure the search warrant, get what we felt was evidence in that criminal case. We are reviewing the tapes," said Moore.
No Charges Filed
State Attorney Ron Flury said no charges, if any, will be filed until the investigation is completed.
"There are a number of video tapes and witnesses that need to be interviewed. The tapes need to be reviewed and I'm not going to piece-meal this together. I'm not going to make a determination until all that's completed," said Flury. Lee, the general manager, who also owns the two-story Market Street building that houses the newspaper's offices, made a brief comment.
"The sheriff's department has an investigation and as soon as they complete it, I'm sure we'll have a comment," said Lee, who declined to take other questions.
It and 29 Video Cassettes Seized by Sheriff
Tipped off by an anonymous source, sheriff's deputies in Franklin County, Fla., on Monday seized a video camera concealed in the ceiling of The Apalachicola Times' unisex bathroom. They also seized 29 video tape cassettes.
John Fred Lee, the general manager of the 1,150-circulation newspaper located on the state's northwest Gulf Coast, said the camera was part of a larger video surveillance network installed as an anti-theft measure.
Lt. Michael Moore of the sheriff's department said there were three to four cameras inside the newspaper's offices, all transmitting to a monitor and VCR recorder in Lee's office. Controls at the monitor allowed a viewer to switch among the different cameras to see various building locations. One of the cameras was hidden in the bathroom, directly above the toilet used by male and female employees.
Camouflaged Toilet Camera
Moore said the bathroom camera was "camouflaged in such a way that if you did not know what you were looking at, you would not know what it was."
Moore said he received a tip about the bathroom camera on February 23. After inspecting the bathroom, Moore said he contacted the State Attorney's office to request a search warrant.
Shortly after sheriff's officers completed their Monday search of the newspaper's offices, seized equipment, and announced an ongoing investigation of Lee, five female employees walked off their jobs. They included a Times reporter, an ad saleswoman, the bookkeeper, a receptionist, and the production manager. Some of the former employees are reported to be meeting with an attorney to explore a possible civil lawsuit.
It is not known if any of the 29 confiscated video cassettes contain images recorded from the bathroom camera. Lt. Moore said his office expected to complete a review of all the tapes as early as today.
"Right now we are in the preliminary phase of the investigation. The first step was to secure the search warrant, get what we felt was evidence in that criminal case. We are reviewing the tapes," said Moore.
No Charges Filed
State Attorney Ron Flury said no charges, if any, will be filed until the investigation is completed.
"There are a number of video tapes and witnesses that need to be interviewed. The tapes need to be reviewed and I'm not going to piece-meal this together. I'm not going to make a determination until all that's completed," said Flury. Lee, the general manager, who also owns the two-story Market Street building that houses the newspaper's offices, made a brief comment.
"The sheriff's department has an investigation and as soon as they complete it, I'm sure we'll have a comment," said Lee, who declined to take other questions.
