A customer at a café in Falls Church, Virginia, went to use the restroom and found a hidden camera, police say.
Hidden cameras were found in two restrooms at Northside Social, city police said Thursday.
The customer was in the café on Saturday, May 11, and went to a restroom on the first floor. They “noticed a pen-like device hidden under the sink and facing the toilet,” police said in a statement.
The customer gave the device to an employee. An identical device was then found “in a similar hiding spot” in another first-floor restroom.
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Police say they were notified of the devices two days later, on May 13.
Detectives believe the devices recorded multiple people who used the restrooms at the café at 205 Park Ave. on May 11 between about 4:30 and 6:30 p.m. Anyone who used the restrooms or who may have potentially relevant information is asked to contact police.
“Investigators would like to identify all potential victims who may have been illegally recorded by these hidden cameras,” police said.
Police urge potential victims to email them if they believe they used a restroom at the café between 4:30 and 6:30 p.m. on May 11.
Falls Church police do not believe any of the images were posted online.
“At the moment, right now, we think they are locally stored on the pen devices,” Falls Church Det. Boris Miranda said. "We don’t have any suspicion that it could have been uploaded to online."
“We are very upset that someone would enter one of our restaurants and seek to violate the privacy of our patrons and staff," Northside Social's owners said in a statement. "We will continue to assist law enforcement in any way we can.”
How to spot hidden cameras
Falls Church police shared tips on how to spot hidden cameras:
- “Pay attention to unusual objects that seem out of place, like smoke detectors with tiny pinholes, fake air fresheners, or decoy objects with unusual shapes that could conceal a camera
- Check common hiding spots like power outlets, tissue boxes, or underneath tables and sinks
- In low-light conditions, look for small red or green LEDs that might indicate a camera operating in night vision mode
- Use your phone’s flashlight function to scan for reflections from concealed camera lenses sometimes hidden in outlets, clocks, and smoke detectors”
“If you see anything out of the ordinary, such obviously don’t seem to be necessarily supposed to be in the bathroom, LED lighting, anything that seems out of the ordinary … just be wary of this,” Miranda said. “For businesses, we recommend, especially when there’s a cleaning service, that they inspect everything. Better make sure that there’s no cameras in there.”
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Private investigators shared some additional tips last month with KSDK, the NBC affiliate station in St. Louis:
- Look for cameras in bathrooms, fitting rooms and rental homes
- Look up, down, in corners and even into the toilet
Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.
