Forsyth County Sheriff's officials have charged an Alpharetta man with being a Peeping Tom after he allegedly took cell phone photos underneath a woman's skirt at a local restaurant.
Stephen M. Roegge, 55, has been charged with one count of Peeping Tom and one count of unlawful eavesdropping or surveillance. Both are felonies, according to Forsyth County Sheriff Ted Paxton.
The charges stem from an incident Monday at Firehouse Subs at 2320 Atlanta Highway in Cumming. Roegge was a customer in the business, Paxton said.
An undercover Forsyth County investigator also happened to be in the restaurant, standing in line to place his order, when he saw Roegge, seated in a chair, place his cell phone directly under the skirt of a woman in line, Paxton said. Roegge then allegedly began taking pictures.
"Our investigator then approached the man and asked him to step outside," Paxton said. "The investigator talked to Roegge about what he had seen, and Roegge admitted to taking the photos."
Another customer in the restaurant also came forward and told the investigator that he also saw Roegge taking the photos, Paxton said.
The victim, a 34-year-old Cumming woman, was unaware that she was the victim of a Peeping Tom until she was approached by the investigator.
"In today's electronic world, people have to be cautious of their surroundings at all times," Paxton said.
Roegge was booked into the Forsyth County Detention Center and was released Monday afternoon on an $11,220 bond, Paxton said. He is scheduled to appear in Superior Court on Aug. 1. His phone was taken into evidence, and testing is being done to determine if there could be other victims.
A recent spate of such incidents have authorities issuing warnings to women to be on the lookout for such shenanigans.
On June 18, police arrested a Dunwoody man on Peeping Tom charges after he allegedly confessed to snapping photos and videos of women in a Macy's restroom at Perimeter Mall.
A Jonesboro man was arrested Wednesday after he allegedly used his cell phone to take photos of a woman in a Goodwill store dressing room in that city. Police said he was holding his infant in his arms as he snapped the photos.
