Department Store Employee Charged With Voyeurism

By Andrew Gorosko

Police arrested an employee at a local department store on charges of voyeurism and breach of peace following a August 2 incident at the store in which the man allegedly used a sophisticated cellphone to make an illegal video recording of a female customer there.

At 3:09 pm on August 2, police received a call from a woman shopper at the TJ Maxx department store at Sand Hill Plaza at 228 South Main Street (Route 25) informing them that a man had sneaked up behind her while she was looking at some garments on the sales floor and had pointed his cell phone’s camera lens up the woman’s dress.

“After an on-scene investigation, Newtown patrol officers discovered that Joshua Pires was using a cell phone to ‘videotape’ an adult female in an indecent manner without the knowledge and consent of the adult female while she was shopping on the main floor area,” police said in a statement.

Police said they then arrested Pires, 18, of Shelton on the two criminal charges. The voyeurism offense is a relatively new state law. It is a felony.

A spokeswoman for TJ Maxx said August 4 that Pires has been suspended from employment at the store.

“At TJ Maxx, we take such matters very seriously. Until we complete our investigation of this police matter, all that we can share at this time is that an associate [employee] was involved and has been suspended. Upon completion of our internal investigation, we will take whatever action is appropriate, including termination, as TJ Maxx does not tolerate violations of its Associate Code of Conduct. Because this is an ongoing police matter, we are not in a position to comment further at this time,” according to a statement from Annmarie Farretta, the manager of corporate communications for the TJX Companies, Inc in Framingham, Mass.

According to state law: a person is guilty of voyeurism when, (1) with malice, such person knowingly photographs, films, videotapes or otherwise records the image of another person (A) without the knowledge and consent of such other person, (B) while such other person is not in plain view, and (C) under circumstances where such other person has a reasonable expectation of privacy, or (2) with intent to arouse or satisfy the sexual desire of such person or any other person, such person knowingly photographs, films, videotapes or otherwise records the image of another person (A) without the knowledge and consent of such other person, (B) while such other person is not in plain view, and (C) under circumstances where such other person has a reasonable expectation of privacy.

Police said that after they processed the charges against Pires, he posted $1,000 bail and was released from custody for an August 18 arraignment in Danbury Superior Court.