A Perthshire peeping tom concealed a phone camera inside a vase of flowers to spy on a 65-year-old woman in her bedroom.
Andrew Thomas, a convicted sex offender, crept into his victim’s home and placed the hidden camera at the foot of her bed.
The woman was horrified to discover the device while rearranging her artificial flowers.
It was found to hold more than 40 hours of intimate recordings of the woman in varying states of undress.
Groundskeeper Thomas was later found sneaking around inside the property by the woman’s daughter and her partner.
The 49-year-old confessed all and admitted having romantic feelings for his victim.
In 2014, the former offshore worker was handed an unpaid work order after he was caught secretly filming a female colleague while she showered in her cabin on a North Sea oil rig.
Close-knit community
Thomas appeared at Perth Sheriff Court and admitted covertly recording his victim at her home in Perthshire over a six-month period between January 29 and July 29 2023.
Fiscal depute Rachel Hill, prosecuting, said the woman lived alone in a small village outside Thomas’ home town of Pitlochry.
“This is a small rural and close-knit community where most locals know one another.
“Many residents often leave their homes insecure.”
Ms Hill said the woman knew Thomas and his elderly parents.
“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.
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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.
“She could see from the thumbnails that there were intimate images of her mother in various stages of undress and also while naked,” Ms Hill said.
Christmas present
Police arrived later that day but the woman was “took shaken and upset” to provide a statement.
However, she remembered receiving a Christmas present from Thomas, which she had stored away, unopened.
Her daughter retrieved it from a cupboard and unwrapped it in front of officers.
It was a power bank, identical to the one found inside the bedroom vase.
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 at the property.
They found the back door unlocked and open.
Ms Hill said a key, stored in the porch, had been used to get inside.
As they entered, Thomas appeared from a hallway door.
Asked what he was doing, he paused for some time then eventually said he was there for a hedge trimmer battery, sometimes kept indoors instead of the garage.
Thomas was told he had no business being in the house and he agreed to leave.
Police interview
Police went to his home later that day.
Ms Hill said: “When interviewed, 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.”
She added: “He confirmed that he had romantic feelings towards the complainer and said the recordings were captured for a sexual purpose.
“He admitted he had gone to the house that day to check the phone but had been interrupted.”
When cautioned and charged, he replied: “Guilty”.
Sheriff Alison McKay placed Thomas on the sex offenders register and deferred sentence for background reports.
She said: “You will appreciate that this offence is a concerning one, not least because you have a previous conviction that appears to be analogous.”
Oil rig camera
Nine years ago, Thomas, of Perth Road, Pitlochry, was placed on supervision and ordered to carry out 100 hours unpaid work after he admitted secretly recording a female colleague on a North Sea platform.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard how he sneaked into his victim’s cabin and hid his mobile in her bathroom.
It was concealed behind a white sheet of paper and set to record footage of her as she washed.
The woman discovered she was being filmed when she spotted the hidden device.
Speaking after sentencing, she told the Press and Journal: “After what he put me through, I feel that all he’s got is a slap on the wrist.”
She added: “He was a really close friend – my best friend on the rigs.
“We’d worked together as stewards for six years. Watching me while I’m in the shower? How could he do that to me? It makes my flesh creep to think what he might have done with the videos.”
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