A North Carolina man accused of taking an upskirt video of a Target customer was photographed with his girlfriend, as his victim breaks his silence.
Thomas Ryan Elliott, 21, was arrested at a store in Greenville on Monday after he was caught crouching near a woman wearing a skirt.
He was seen on camera placing his cell phone on the ground to record the video of the woman’s black outfit.
In an interview wit WITNThe unidentified victim recalled the disturbing moment she realized she was being recorded.
A North Carolina man accused of recording an upskirt video of a Target customer has been photographed with his girlfriend.
A North Carolina man lost his volunteer position at an elementary school after he was caught on camera taking an upskirt video of a customer at a local Target.
Thomas Elliott, 21, was arrested at a Target in Greenville on Monday afternoon.
The anonymous victim recalled the disturbing moment she realized she was being recorded.
“No matter how much you try to think that you’re going to be prepared for it, when it actually happens, it makes your head spin when it actually happens,” he said.
She remembered the moment she realized the suspect seemed to be staying suspiciously close to her.
“I decided to get up and walk over and then at that point I was no longer concentrating on what I was trying to buy,” the woman said.
“I was more distracted that he was still in the area.” Once she moved, the suspect crouched down behind her and placed her phone under her skirt, according to the victim.
Another person shopping at Target began filming him after he began to believe he was following the woman around the store.
Elliott is seen on camera and continues to place his phone on the floor to film the customer.
The woman filming Elliott eventually posted the video on social media, which led to Elliott’s arrest.
When police detained Elliot, he “denied any wrongdoing and showed us (police) recent photographs on his cell phone.”
Elliot and his girlfriend are pictured above.
Elliot was also a parishioner of Opendoor Church and appears to have been recently baptized.
The woman filming Elliott eventually posted the video on social media, which led to Elliott’s arrest.
Authorities arrested the man, charged him and obtained a search warrant for his cell phone to try to find inappropriate photographs of children.
Authorities arrested the man, charged him and obtained a search warrant for his cell phone to try to find inappropriate photographs of children.
They are looking for “deleted information that can be recovered through forensic examination,” according to WITN.
Police say they have not yet discovered anything inappropriate involving children on the phone.
Elliott was released after posting $5,000 bail and had his first court appearance on Tuesday, Greenville police told DailyMail.com.
The man is a volunteer at Eastern Elementary School in Greenville, but a county schools spokesperson says they probably won’t take him back.
Owen’s religious posts are seen above, as shared on his social media.
“We are disturbed and deeply concerned by video images of the individual that have been shared on social media and news outlets, and based on the images, the individual will not return to our campuses as a volunteer or be hired as an employee,” Tom said. McClellan, Pitt County Schools spokesperson.
McClellan added that volunteers and visitors go through a screening program that finds out if they are on any sex offender lists before they are hired.
Elliot was also a parishioner of Opendoor Church and appears to have been recently baptized.
The church said in a statement: ‘Safety and security are of utmost importance to us. We are taking this situation very seriously. It is no longer allowed on our properties.
‘We continue to seek God’s wisdom after this situation. We pray for God’s healing and redemption for all affected.’