Cafe owner fined over filming his housemate

A CAFE owner has to cough up thousands of dollars after his plan to secretly record his male housemate in the shower failed when the victim saw the camera glinting in the laundry basket.

Tzu-Chao Chen, 32, pleaded guilty in Hobart Magistrates Court on Thursday to one count of recording another person’s anal or genital region .

The prosecutor told the court the victim was getting out of the shower in February this year when he noticed a glint in the clothes basket nearby. “A phone had been concealed under clothes and had appeared to be directly (angled) towards the shower,” the prosecutor said.

The victim noticed the phone was recording a video, which had been running for nearly two hours.

He watched the video back and it showed him fully naked, capturing his anal and genital area. “The video also captured the victim masturbating,” the prosecutor said.

The tenant found earlier recordings showing Chen setting up the camera and making sure it faced the shower.

The victim, who was renting a room from Chen, deleted the recording and took the phone to Hobart Police Station.

Chen later voluntarily attended the police station and said he didn’t know why he filmed his housemate, but he felt guilty and planned to donate to charity to make up for his conduct.

According to ASIC documents and state liquor licence registers, Chen is the sole trader and licensee for Abel Land, a Hobart cafe offering bao and Taiwanese and Thai cuisine.

Chen’s lawyer asked Magistrate Reg Marron not to record a conviction, as it could impact his visa and his business.

Mr Marron fined Chen $5000 and did not record a conviction.