Chandigarh: Spy camera in PG washroom; girl, male friend held
Chandigarh, November 29
A girl residing at a paying guest (PG) accommodation in Sector 22 and her friend have been arrested by the police after a spy camera was discovered in the washroom shared by other female tenants on the top floor of the house.
The suspect, Amit Handa (30), a Sector 21 resident, had asked the girl, a native of Uttar Pradesh (UP), to hide the camera in the washroom to capture objectionable videos of other girls staying in the PG accommodation, to make money. The incident came to light when a woman residing in another room discovered the camera in the washroom.
Camera placed atop geyser
- Yashpal, the owner of the house, said the incident came to light on November 26 around 6 pm when another woman tenant noticed the covert device atop the geyser in the common washroom.
- A 22-year-old UP native, who had rented a room just five days ago, has confessed to the crime, he said, adding that she claimed to have placed the camera at 3 pm on November 26.
Device bought 3 days prior to incident
- The girl purchased the camera from a shop in Sector 45 three days before the incident. The police have reportedly procured the CCTV footage in which the girl is seen visiting the shop.
Suspects’ phones to be sent to CFSL
- The police arrested the girl and her friend, a resident of Sector 21, on Tuesday and seized their mobile phones. The phones will be sent to the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) for further investigation. The phones would be analysed to confirm whether the suspects had deleted some data, said a police official.
A policeman privy to the investigation revealed that Amit had allegedly directed the girl to conceal the camera with the intent of recording objectionable videos of other tenants.
Yashpal, the owner of the house, recounted that the incident came to light on November 26, around 6 pm, when another woman noticed the covert device atop the geyser in the common washroom. After discussing the incident with another occupant and researching the device on YouTube, they alerted the landlord.
The police were informed about the incident following which cops reached the spot and seized the camera.
Yashpal shared that the 22-year-old suspect, who had rented a room just five days earlier, confessed to the crime in front of everyone. “She claimed to have placed the camera near the geyser at 3 pm on November 26, and it was discovered three hours later,” he added.
A police official said the girl, who was reportedly pursuing an air hostess course, had purchased the camera from a shop in Sector 45 around three days before the incident. “We have procured the CCTV footage in which the girl can be seen visiting the shop to purchase the camera,” the police official added.
The police yesterday arrested both the girl and her friend and seized their mobile phones. The phones will be sent to the Central Forensic Science Laboratory for further investigation. “The mobile phones will be analysed to confirm whether the suspects had deleted some data from the phones,” said a police official.
Meanwhile, a case under Sections 354-C and 509 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 66-E of the Information Technology Act has been registered at the Sector 17 police station on the complaint of a 39-year-old woman residing in the PG.
Both the suspects were produced in a court today and were released on bail.
