‘Beyond creepy’: Arrest over alleged upskirting at Darlinghurst art event
A magistrate has labelled an alleged upskirter’s behaviour as “beyond creepy” after he allegedly filmed women without consent at an art event in Darlinghurst.
Central Sydney
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An audio visual technician accused of taking upskirt videos of women at an art event in Darlinghurst has fronted court – with a magistrate labelling his alleged behaviour as “beyond creepy”.
Peter Jackson, 63, from Coogee, was pulled over by police on Monday afternoon because of the manner of his driving.
Jackson is known to police and was convicted last year for filming his neighbour’s child without consent under a fence, a court heard on Tuesday.
After he was stopped by police, officers spoke with Jackson and searched his vehicle, finding SIM cards and a digital camera.
Police will allege in court that the camera contained footage from an art event held in Darlinghurst earlier this month, where the private parts of women were unknowingly filmed.
He was arrested and spent a night behind bars before appearing in Waverley Local Court on Tuesday.
Court documents revealed police will allege he recorded “the buttocks and genital region of numerous women without consent”.
The police prosecutor opposed bail and said this was a similar offence to his conviction last year.
“He was quite lucky to escape a custodial sentence (on the last occasion) and has taken it on himself to offend again,” the prosecutor said.
He said on this occasion Jackson attended an art gallery in Darlinghurst and allegedly used a wire attached to a device to take the upskirting footage.
His defence said Jackson had recently lost his job as an audio visual technician as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Magistrate Allison Hawkins granted him bail but warned him not to breach any of the strict conditions.
“If you are not going to take your bail seriously then get comfortable (in prison) because that is where you are going to end up.”
Magistrate Hawkins labelled his alleged behaviour as “beyond creepy”.
“It is beyond creepy. I don’t know how else to describe it. It is distasteful,” she said.
“If the police facts are proven to be true … it would seem that you were behaving in a way that demonstrates you want to go to jail.”
His bail conditions include to reside at an address in Bardwell Valley, to report to police twice a week, to not possess any recording equipment or device capable of recording except one mobile phone, to allow police to search his mobile phone, and not to attend any large gatherings or loiter in a public place without reason.
He has been charged with intentionally record intimate image without consent and two counts of fail to comply with reporting obligations.