Man accused of using 'spy toy' to survey female neighbor
NORTH BETHESDA, Md. (WJLA) - Imagine living on the third floor of your condominium building and looking outside to find a camera looking back. That is exactly what a woman told police she saw, and now her downstairs neighbor is facing multiple criminal charges.
According to police, Donald Beard, 60, repeatedly attached a camera to a long metal pole. Beard would then walk onto his second floor balcony along the 10600 block of Montrose Avenue and hoist the pole, camera rolling, to spy on the woman who lived upstairs.
Around 10 p.m. one night in October, 2014, the victim looked outside her living room window and saw a metal pole swinging back-and-forth. A camera was attached, recording her every move. She immediately called police.
"Whoa, I did not know that," neighbor Wendy Brown exclaimed. "That's not good at all because if he'll do it to one person, he'll probably do it to someone else."
While searching Beard's computers, external hard drives, flash cards, cell phones, tablets, cameras, and other electronic devices, detectives say they uncovered 16 individual videos of the victim. One clip showed the middle-aged women topless.
As for a motive, Beard reportedly told police his unique surveillance mission was "for investigative purposes", claiming his neighbor was spending time with married men and he wanted to catch her in the act.
"That was simply for self gratification," Darrell Hawkins remarked. "I'm not standing out on my balcony with no pole, looking in someone else's window because that is invading their privacy."
Police say Beard also kept an audio journal of the victim's daily activities. One recording, narrated by the 60-year, says:
"It's 12:32 p.m. on the 8th of June. She came home last ten minutes from the pool. I have laundry in. She came home while I was downstairs."
According to police, Beard told officers he found the victim, "attractive", and added that although he knew she was single, he had not asked her on a date.
"I would say it's a man who has a wicked mind. I am absolutely stunned to realize that this is going on," resident Weltha Logan added.
On Tuesday, ABC 7 News knocked on Beard's condominium door, and also called his phone number listed in court documents. He did not respond.
Beard is charged with camera-private residence, visual surveillance-private area, and two counts of interception of communication. He will make his first court appearance on July 23, at 8:30 a.m. in Montgomery County District Court.
