Simple threats are still threats. Baby monitors and other off-the-shelf communications devices can work well as tools for eavesdropping and surveillance. Be on the lookout for any unauthorized or out-of-place devices that may be spotted in your place of business or your home. …and you may want to check under your bed before you go to sleep tonight.
Nashville, TN, police arrested a man after they say he used a baby monitor to spy on a female coworker in her Sylvan Heights home. Christopher Neel, 35, is charged with wiretapping and aggravated burglary in connection with the incident involving a female victim.
According to the arrest affidavit, the woman found the baby monitor underneath her bed in her home in February and suspected Neel was the person who put it there.
The report states that when Neel was confronted by the woman he admitted he placed the monitor in her home. Neel, the affidavit continues, also told the woman that he entered her home after he watched someone enter the keycode to her front door at a party in November.
Police also reported Neel also placed a baby monitor in other co-workers’ homes, and that when confronted by his co-workers in March he wrote letters to at least one of them apologizing for his actions.
According to the affidavit, Neel was arrested Tuesday in connection with the incident that happened in February.
It was then that police said the victim found the baby monitor underneath her bed and suspected Neel was the person who put it there.
At work, police said the victim learned that two more of her coworkers also found baby monitors underneath their beds.
Together, police said the three confronted Neel at the end of March and recorded the conversation. In it, police said Neel admitted to placing the monitor under the first victim’s bed back in November, several months before it was found.
A few days after Neel was confronted, the first victim reported she got a letter from Neel apologizing and admitting what he had done. Then, she handed all of the information over to police.
When the victim asked Neel how he got into her home, he reportedly told her that he saw someone type in the code to her front door at a party and memorized it.
Simple devices such as baby monitors may be spotted easily. More advanced devices may require the help of a TSCM security professional. There are many devices transmitting radio signals in homes and offices today. Discerning between authorized, expected, signals and those that might be nefarious is not always easy and may need the specialized equipment and training of a professional.
Sources:
The Tennessean.com
NewsChannel5.com