KATY, Texas - Sheriff’s deputies are looking for a peeping tom who allegedly secretly recorded video of a woman in a Katy store.
Yessenia Posada says for nearly 15 minutes, a stranger used his cell phone to record her in the dressing room of the Goodwill store on North Fry Road.
“It makes me feel violated in so many different ways, I couldn’t even explain,” Posada said.
The 26-year-old woman says around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, she had a sinking feeling while trying on clothes.
“I noticed this guy was getting closer and closer to my dressing room," Posada said.
She says he put a backpack down on the floor with his phone sitting on top of it. The man kept walking back and forth, placing the bag down by her dressing room, then the one right beside her.
“I was like, 'He probably is not filming me. I’m probably just overreacting.' Then it happened again,” she said.
In a panic, she put back on her clothes and alerted the store staff.
“By the time they were aware of what happened, the guy had already left the store," Posada said.
Goodwill says they’re working with the Harris County Sherriff’s Office in their investigation.
“There is a zero-tolerance policy for this kind of behavior in our stores,” said Terri Davis, media relations manager with Goodwill Industries of Houston.
The incident involving Posada possibly includes a second unsuspecting victim in the other dressing room.
Fortunately, Posada says deputies have leads to go on from store surveillance video.
“They had an image of him, and they have video surveillance of what he was doing from the time he was doing it ‘til the time that I called police," she said.
Authorities say cell phones can be used as portable spying devices. They suggest: when you go into a dressing room, look up, down and in the corners for anything suspicious. Be aware activities happening just outside your dressing room, and if you feel uneasy, the safest bet is to leave. Also be sure to report it to the store and police.
Posada says she hopes the “creep” with the camera gets caught and others don’t fall prey.
“I just want other women to know that they need to be aware of their surroundings," she said. "It can happen to anyone, any age.”
The young woman says the suspect seemed calm, focused and efficient while he was in the dressing room area, making her think that is far from the first time he’s done this.
Under Texas law, the crime is called “invasive visual recording,” and it can carry up to 2 years in prison.