By DELILAH GUTIERREZ
Staff Writer
When Max Vest stayed at an Airbnb, he expected a normal stay, but instead, there was horror. Max Vest met the host of the Airbnb and the man introduced himself as Ralph, although his name on the site was Ray. At around 8:30 pm, Max went to dinner and when he got back, his hosts were asleep in the room adjacent to his. The room appeared normal, but when Max investigated a light he saw, when he flicked the light switch off, he found two small, black boxes near an outlet which looked like charging cubes. Upon closer examination, Max found out they were actually two cameras that faced his bed and they were recording. Max left the Airbnb that night, called his wife, and called the safety team for Airbnb. The situation is being taken care of today.
On February 5, a high school teacher, David Kruchten, was charged with three counts of interfering with privacy with a minor. While on a school trip, Krutchen hid cameras inside two air fresheners and a smoke detector. Police found surveillance devices in three different hotel rooms where teenage students stayed. The devices were placed to face the toilet and shower. One of the students discovered a camera when she tried to push the button to activate the air freshener, but instead, it opened up to reveal the camera. Police believe Krutchen also placed cameras in thermostats, but he destroyed them before being discovered.
In Michigan, a man named Nathan Wilson faces 5 felonies for surveilling an unclothed person, capturing/distributing an image of an unclothed person, eavesdropping, installing/using a device, and two counts of using a computer to commit a crime. Wilson went to Target, grabbed some clothes, went to the dressing room, and placed a camera in the dressing room. He was stopped before he could leave the store. Wilson was also caught in 2015 for putting a hole in a fitting room wall to spy on women.
Hidden cameras can be placed everywhere in every location. Some cameras are placed inside of clocks, chargers, screws, lightbulbs, even a fan. In Airbnbs, the policy states the host must disclose if they have cameras, but the host can simply post a picture of a room the camera is located in and it follows the policy. If the camera is live, it could be streamed directly to the internet where anyone could have access. Remember to be cautious of where you are going and take precautions.