Charges have not been filed against a man who police say was
following female customers around a Morgan Hill grocery store and
secretly video taping them.
Charges have not been filed against a man who police say was following female customers around a Morgan Hill grocery store and secretly video taping them.
Prosecutors are still reviewing the case against Juan Rodriguez, 31 of San Jose, according to Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Amy Cornell.
Rodriguez was arrested by an off-duty sheriff’s deputy and Morgan Hill police inside the Safeway store on Dunne Avenue about 5:10 p.m. Saturday, police said.
The off-duty Santa Clara County Sheriff’s deputy detained Rodriguez after he saw him following women around the store with a small video camera concealed under a box in his hand, police said. The deputy, Sgt. Nuno Ribeiro, later told Morgan Hill police that while he was shopping at the store he noticed the suspect behaving strangely. He continued to watch Rodriguez as he followed several women holding the camera at different angles to record the women’s breasts and buttocks without their knowledge.
Ribeiro told someone at the store to call 911. He approached Rodriguez and identified himself as a sheriff’s deputy and told him he was under arrest. The suspect tried to flee, but Ribeiro, assisted by a Gilroy resident who was also shopping at the time, detained him after a brief struggle.
Morgan Hill police arrested Rodriguez on suspicion of concealing a camera for sexual gratification and battery on a peace officer. He was booked into county jail, but is no longer in custody.
Rodriguez has a provisional arraignment hearing scheduled for May 21, pending the filing of charges, Cornell said. If charges are not filed, the court date will be canceled.
Police have not identified any individual female suspects who were allegedly video taped by Rodriguez, according to Sgt. Jerry Neumayer. The arrest was based on the first-hand view of the incident by a law enforcement officer.
Ribeiro was uninjured by the arrest and struggle with Rodriguez, Neumayer said.
