GREENWOOD - Police say female shoppers became the target of video voyeurism at a local mall.
Inside the Von Maur department store at Greenwood Park Mall, security noticed disturbing behavior by a man on the escalator. Investigators say the man was standing way too close, and capturing video under women's skirts.
"They had that distinct feeling that this is not right," said Greenwood Police Chief Rick McQueary. "He approached them and invaded their space. All the time they had no idea they were being violated."
Police say 60-year-old Arthur Delgado, Indianapolis, had a secret camera strapped to his shoelaces.
Investigators say he was using a tiny lens, hidden in a USB device, to target female shoppers.
"He admitted that he was visiting places where females were specifically wearing skirts and dresses and filming up the garments of the females for his own pleasure," McQueary said.
But in front of Eyewitness News cameras, Delgado told a different story.
"I have a friend that's handicapped and I, you know, he likes pictures of women and I was basically going to take some pictures of some women for him and it basically got out of hand," Delgado said.
Eyewitness News then asked Delgado about a police report that says he admitted using a shoe-mounted camera.
"Well, no the thing is, I had it in my hand and then I just noticed it I tried to get rid of it in my shoe and stuff like that," Delgado said. "I regret it and it's just a stupid mistake. I've never done that before. That's just a one-time thing for me."
But police say Delgado admitted it wasn't the first time.
They say he told them he captured unsuspecting women on camera just a few days before at the Indiana State Fair.
"He (the officer) got a confession. It's tape recorded," McQueary said.
Prosecutors had to drop charges against an accused voyeur at Castleton Square Mall last summer, because state law said voyeurism meant peeping inside a dwelling. Lawmakers recently changed the definition of voyeurism. It now includes looking up a skirt in a public place. Police say it's justice for the victims and potential jail time for the accused.
"We're not going to tolerate this," McQueary said. "If we know it and it's brought to our attention that you're a victim, we're going to put these people in jail.
Investigators say there could be other women who didn't know they were filmed at the mall or at the State Fair.
If you recognize the suspect and think you may have been a victim, call Greenwood Police.
