A groundskeeper sneaked in and out of a woman’s home for six months to secretly recover 40 hours of spycam footage he filmed from a vase of flowers.
Andrew Thomas crept into the woman’s bedroom and set up the hidden camera after becoming infatuated with her while she walked her dog.
The 49-year-old spent months filming the unsuspecting pensioner after concealing his camera phone inside the vase at the foot of her bed.
Thomas, who committed a similar offense on an oil rig ten years ago, was apprehended after the shocked victim found the device hidden among her artificial flowers.
The camera phone’s memory was found to hold more than 40 hours of intimate recordings of the 65-year-old woman in varying states of undress.
He was later discovered sneaking around inside the property by the woman’s daughter and her partner.
Thomas confessed and admitted having romantic feelings for his victim.
Spycam sex offender Andrew Thomas leaving Perth Sheriff Court with his father
Thomas admitted covertly recording his victim at her home in Perthshire from 29 January to 29 July 2023.
Solicitor Linda Clark, defending, told Perth Sheriff Court: ‘It seems that Mr Thomas was infatuated with the complainer.
‘He thought a friendship was going to materialise into something different.
His rationale for planting a recording device in the victim’s residence does not justify his actions. Although he may have misinterpreted the situation, it does not excuse his behavior.
Sheriff Alison McKay postponed the sentencing and addressed Thomas saying, “I may not be able to impose the lengthy prison term he deserves. I fully acknowledge that the victim feels violated and that her sense of security in her own home has been infringed upon.”
‘There is no doubt your behaviour was serious and custody is one of the alternatives available to the court.’
Fiscal depute Rachel Hill said the woman lived alone in a small village near Thomas’s home town of Pitlochry.
‘This is a small rural and close-knit community where most locals know one another,’ she said. ‘Many residents often leave their homes insecure.
‘She considered the accused to be a friend and they regularly socialised together with shared coffees, alcoholic drinks and dog walks.’
The court heard that in December 2022, Thomas told the woman he had ‘deeper romantic feelings towards her’ but she did not share them.
Ms Hill said: ‘On July 29 2023, the complainer was in the process of rearranging artificial flowers in a vase at the foot of her bed.
‘She became aware of an object within the vase, which had a camera lens pointing in the general direction of her bed.
‘Upon further investigation, this was found to be a mobile phone attached to the inside of the vase, connected to a power bank also inside the vase.’
The device was described as a white iPhone, stuck on using Velcro, protruding from the vase by about an inch.
The fiscal depute said: ‘It could be seen from the screen that a video recording was taking place. It appeared to have been running for a period of 40 hours and 45 minutes.’
When her daughter looked at the photo gallery, she found 34 files.
The following day, Thomas crept into the woman’s home shortly after she left for church. Her daughter and her partner, who were nearby, saw him.
He claimed to be there for a hedge trimmer battery but was told he had no business being in the house and he agreed to leave. Police went to his home later that day.
The fiscal aded: ‘He openly admitted the offence, stating he had entered the property whilst it was unlocked and placed the camera phone inside the vase.
‘He said he had returned on numerous occasions to replace the battery but couldn’t say how many times.
In 2014, the former offshore worker was handed an unpaid work order after he was caught secretly filming a female colleague showering in her cabin on a North Sea rig.
