Central Coast man hid GoPro camera in bathroom to film stepdaughter’s ‘growth’

A man who was on a cocktail of cannabis and alcohol when he planted a GoPro camera to film his stepdaughter showering, said it was to see her “growth” and not “sexual”.

A man hid a GoPro camera in the bathroom to film his stepdaughter having a shower. (File picture)

A man has pleaded guilty to hiding a GoPro camera in his stepdaughter’s bathroom to film her in the shower, a court has heard.

The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, faced Wyong Local Court on Tuesday where he pleaded guilty to one count of producing child abuse material in February 2023.

His bail was continued and he was adjourned to April 30 to undergo a full sentence assessment report.

An agreed set of facts states the man, aged in his 30s, had been stepdad to a young girl for about eight years when he had a conversation with his partner about the girl reaching puberty and “growing up”.

One afternoon when the girl was getting ready to have a shower “the accused set up a GoPro camera in the bathroom on the edge of the bath”, the facts state.

The man, aged in his 30s, leaving Wyong Local Court after pleading guilty to filming his stepdaughter in the shower. Picture: NewsLocal

The man hid the camera under a “toy bath” and set the camera to record before leaving the bathroom.

“While the victim was showering, without any clothes on, she picked up the ‘toy bath’ and noticed the camera underneath,” the facts state.

The stepdad was eventually arrested and taken to Wyong Police Station where he was charged. (File image)

“The victim noticed the screen was displaying the camera view and had a red blinking light in the corner. The victim moved the camera to the bathroom sink facing away from the shower.”

When she finished showering and left the offender returned to the bathroom and retrieved the camera.

But it wasn’t until months later in November 2023 when the victim disclosed the incident to her mum.

“The victim stated that she did not tell the witness sooner as she did not want the offender to get into any trouble and the family break up,” the facts state.

When confronted by his partner, the offender agreed he had done it “stating that he was curious about the victim’s growth and it was not of a sexual nature”.

She told him to get out of the house that night and he has never returned.

Eight months later in mid-2024 the offender was arrested and taken to Wyong Police Station where he was interviewed and made certain admissions.

“That while under the influence of cannabis and alcohol, he placed a camera in the bathroom to record the complainant having a shower and he did this as he wanted to see how the victim was growing for himself,” the facts state.