A California family were left terrified after a hidden camera disguised as a rock pointing at their home was discovered.
The device, concealed in dirt next to a sidewalk, was found by the neighbor of apparent target James Dimapasok, who said he and his family are bewildered as to why someone would want to record them.
‘I was scared,’ he told KTLA. ‘My wife was crying.’
After reporting the camera to police, Dimapasok found that he was able to download video from the camera, and captured a glimpse of the perpetrator.
This is the suspect seen placing a hidden camera directed at a California family’s home
The camera was concealed in dirt and designed to look like a rock, and was supported by a power bank so it could work without a cord
Apparent target James Dimapasok said his family have been left terrified and confused after their neighbor discovered the hidden camera
The footage downloaded from the camera showed the suspect brushing back dirt to hide the camera, wearing gardening gloves, a blue shirt and bike helmet.
The perpetrator rode a scooter to and from the scene, which Dimapasok feared was purposefully placed outside his home, possibly to case it out for a robbery.
‘It was a camera that was covered in clay that looked like a rock, so it was very precise,’ he said.
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The resident added that he found out it was powered by a cordless power bank, meaning the camera was intended to remain there for some time.
Police told Dimapasok that the camera was transmitting off local cell towers, and was potentially used as a live stream of the neighborhood.
In the search for the perpetrator, Dimapasok also checked his Ring doorbell camera, which captured another angle of the camera being placed but was too far away for a clearer description.
Asked why someone would want to record his street, Dimapasok said he was in the dark.
‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘I really do not know.’
Dimapasok (pictured with his family on social media) said he is planning to beef up his home security system in response to the chilling find
The camera was pointed directly at Dimapasok’s home, sparking fears that it was being used to case out his home
Dimapasok’s Ring doorbell camera captured another angle of the camera being placed but was too far away for a clearer description of the suspect
Neighbor Julissa Castillo floated another chilling theory, as she pointed out that the street is commonly used by children walking to school and could be used for ‘watching a particular child’
His neighbor, Julissa Castillo, floated another chilling theory, as she pointed out that the street is commonly used by children walking to school.
‘A lot of them do, particularly on that street,’ she said. ‘It almost concerns me that maybe they’re watching a particular child.’
Dimapasok said he is beefing up his home security system, while the case remains under investigation by the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department.
In a message to the suspect, he said: ‘I have no money… So whatever you’re doing, if it’s money or whatnot, I got nothing and I don’t know why you’re doing it. Just stop.’