Durham police search for man accused of taking photos of young girl in bathroom stall
DURHAM, North Carolina (WTVD) -- The Durham Police Department is seeking the public's help finding and identifying a man who is accused of taking pictures of a little girl in a public bathroom stall.
According to Durham police, they've been trying to find the suspect for weeks and need to take him off the streets before he victimizes someone else.
Surveillance video shows a heavy-set man in a white t-shirt wearing a black baseball cap following a woman and her granddaughter around Michaels.
When the little girl goes to the bathroom the man soon follows.
"The male went in the stall and took a picture with his cell phone under the stall while the little girl was in the bathroom," Durham police detective McLloyd Bynum told ABC 11.
Women who shop at the store said they are grateful to the craft store for helping in the search by providing the video to investigators.
Stay on top of breaking news stories with the ABC11 News App
But many said they can't understand how a grown man could do this.
"I'm shocked. I'm appalled. I'm angry. I'm horrified," said Jill Wiese. "I can't understand what would go through someone's head to want to even do that."
"As a parent, the safety of our children every place we go is absolutely paramount," said Claudia Fernandez, another mom who shops at Michaels. "So, I'm scared that that happened, and I'm happy that the store is taking it very seriously."
Detective Bynum is concerned that the suspect has or will strike again at another store.
He also fears if the activity isn't stopped it will escalate.
"Things like this can lead to other things," he said. "Taking pictures under stalls is definitely something you want to go ahead and be aware of and cut it off before leading to other things like rapes."
Fernandez agrees. "When people have the opportunity to behave badly and they aren't held accountable for their behavior it's likely that they will move on to the next step."
That's why she hopes that anyone who recognizes the man, even if they are a close friend or family member, will turn him in.
