FLEMING ISLAND, Fla. – The Clay County Sheriff’s Office has released an image of a man it said was taking photos up a woman’s dress inside a Target store in Fleming Island. Now deputies are searching for him.
The image released shows a man in a dark hooded sweatshirt and a hat who the Sheriff’s Office said took a photo inside the store on County Road 220.
The Sheriff’s Office said last Friday a woman was inside of Target shopping for Christmas items and did not notice the man behind her until she felt something touch her leg. When the woman turned around to see what touched her, she saw the man taking a picture with his cell phone under her dress, the Sheriff’s Office said. He then left Target in a dark-colored GMC Sierra pickup truck, according to investigators.
Shoppers had a mix of reactions on Wednesday.
“I actually used to work at Target for their cell phone department and I never heard of anything like that happening over there. Different store,” shopper Ken Lawrence said.
“I guess people don’t think that kind of stuff happens around here. But that stuff happens everywhere,” Lilianna Rivera said.
The post of the suspect’s image has been shared hundreds of times on the Clay County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.
News4JAX crime and safety expert Ken Jefferson is a former sex crimes investigator. He said these types of crimes are becoming more common.
“As a former sex crimes investigator, this particular type of crime has evolved to be a little larger than before,” Jefferson said. “You see a little more now than you’ve seen in the past simply because cell phones make it easier for these guys to do this. They sometimes tie or tape a phone around their foot and then walk around with a video camera on them get close enough to a female to try to upskirt them or shoot video from the ground up.”
Anyone who has information about the man is asked to call Deputy K. Carrington at 904-264-6512 or email him at kcarrington@claysheriff.com.