A peeping Tom got what’s coming to him after he was tackled by a mob of angry parents. The incident occurred in a Cracker Barrel restaurant chain in South Carolina on Sunday morning. The suspect, who turned out to be a registered voyeur, was caught after allegedly leering at a teenage girl in a bathroom stall.
According to a report in WSPA, the suspect was identified as Douglas Lane, a 53-year-old resident of Charlotte, North Carolina. Lane was suspected of leering at not only one, but several other girls who were inside the bathroom during the incident. Most of the girls and their parents were in town for a softball tournament.
Group of angry dads tackle the suspect
Photo: Foter/Martin J. Gallego
A 15-year-old girl claimed that Lane was peeping at her in the women’s restroom at the restaurant. While she was inside, she was felt movements in her feet. When she looked down, the girl saw Lane’s head protruding from the neighboring stall.
After getting out of the bathroom, the teenage girl immediately told her dad what happened. The father sent a female employee into the restroom to check the man. When the suspect came out of the restroom, the father did not waste any time in getting his hands on him.
He confronted the peeping Tom at the entrance of the restroom. At first, the suspect tried to flee the scene, but several other dads were already alerted about the incident. They tackled lane in the parking lot and restrained him while waiting for law enforcement authorities to arrive.
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“I’ll never forget the way they looked after. They were traumatized. The guy came running, sprinting out the front door with a very bloody nose,” stated one of the witnesses.
When the police arrived, they found Lane lying on the grass with a bloody nose, surrounded by the a group of dads. Inside the bathroom stall, they also found Lane’s mobile phone. Apparently, the suspect dropped it while he was trying to flee from the restroom.
Suspect had string of charges
Photo: Screenshot from Facebook
A background check revealed that this is not the first time Lane was involved in a peeping incident. According to Crime Online, the North Carolina State Bureau uncovered Lane’s previous cases related to voyeurism.
In 2004, he was convicted for secretly peeping at 8-year-old and 9-year-old victims. Four years later, he was convicted for peeping at an adult victim. According to records, from 1984, the suspect had at least eight convictions for voyeurism and aggravated voyeurism.
Due to health complications cited by his lawyer, a South Carolina judge allowed Lane to post $2,000 bail under the conditions that he will be under home detention with a GPS monitoring device.
Lane’s first court hearing is scheduled at 9:00 a.m. on November 12. He’s facing multiple charges for voyeurism, simple possession of marijuana and paraphernalia. As of now, investigation is still on-going to see if Lane could face more charges related to the incident.
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