Man admits bathroom voyeurism

REGINA — A man who recorded videos of female customers using the washroom in a Regina Tim Hortons pleaded guilty on Tuesday to voyeurism.

John Joseph William Seitz, 23, is due back in Regina Provincial Court on July 15 for sentencing.

On March 15, a woman at the Park Street Tim Hortons went into the bathroom and noticed Seitz, who was an employee at the business, under the sink. She assumed he was cleaning the facilities, according to Crown prosecutor Loreley Berra.

When the woman returned to the washroom after Seitz left a few moments later, she noticed a recording device underneath the sink, pointed at the toilet.

She took it to the Regina police headquarters, where an officer noticed the device was still recording. Searching the device, the officer found recordings of three women using the washroom, Berra said.

The woman identified Seitz from a photo lineup. Video surveillance at Tim Hortons also recorded him entering and leaving the washroom before the device was discovered.

When questioned by police, Seitz admitted to the offence, arguing that he owed a debt to someone and recording women in the washroom was supposed to settle that debt. Seitz was subsequently fired by Tim Hortons.

Berra recommended a threemonth conditional sentence of house arrest with a provision that he be allowed to seek permission to attend his new job at another restaurant.

Berra also recommended Seitz be placed on probation for one year when the conditional sentence expires, and that he be required to attend sexual offender treatment programs and psychological counselling.

Seitz, who represented himself in court on Tuesday, had no prior criminal record.

Arguing that this case could be precedent setting, Judge Bruce Henning adjourned sentencing to review the matter.