An area man has been arrested for allegedly hiding a camera in a bathroom to photograph the 11-year-old granddaughter of his live-in girlfriend while she showered. Fifty-seven-year-old Robert Dale Thomas of rural Harrison was arrested April 25 on multiple felony charges.
According to court documents in the case, the girl’s mother discovered a small box with wires and a red bulb concealed in a basket on the counter of the bathroom. The gadget had an SD card which she removed and put it in her cell phone to see what was on it. There were several folders with photos of her daughter, nude, entering and exiting the shower. She also found photos of Thomas holding a tablet and setting up the camera.
When investigators checked the SD card, the found photos of Thomas in the bathroom with a tablet, apparently viewing the camera’s angles as photos were taken. The camera was facing directly towards the shower, zoomed to fit the entire shower in the frame.
The girl also said during an interview that Thomas had inappropriate conversations with her and one time, touched her under her shirt.
Thomas is charged with sexual assault in the second degree; nine counts of video voyeurism; and nine counts of distributing, possessing or viewing matter depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child. He is being held in the Boone County Jail.
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