‘He targets female victims’: Man accused of late-night peeping into windows in Brighton was arrested
A 36-year-old man has been arrested in connection with late-night peeping into windows in Brighton in recent weeks, police said Thursday.
Francis Gomez of Brighton was arrested Wednesday night on warrants for two incidents that occurred on Donnybrook Road and Beechcroft Street in Brighton.
“We just got a Ring camera because of all of this,” said Kate Mooney. “It puts you a little more on edge. Makes me feel good that I have a dog.”
The ‘all of this’ Mooney is referring to centers on a Peeping Tom who has put many women in the area on edge.
“My roommates and I were pretty worried the past week making sure our doors were locked... windows were locked,” said Carolyn Patterson, who lives with her roommates on the first floor of a house on Donnybrook Road. “Very frightening. It could have been any of us here.”
Last week, on March 17, police responded to Beechcroft Street for a report of a suspicious man lurking outside a woman’s home with a flashlight.
The victim told police she thought it was her next-door neighbor looking for something in their yard, but then noticed the man looking into her window with a flashlight.
Responding officers found a plastic chair in the driveway directly in front of the victim’s window, police said. The woman told police the chair did not belong to her.
This incident followed a report in February of police urging the community to be vigilant amid a recent spike in break-ins and break-in attempts in Brighton.
Gomez is charged with disorderly conduct on the peeping tom accusations and attempted breaking & entering. He pleaded not guilty in Brighton District Court Thursday.
Prosecutors asked the judge to impose $5,000 bail -- noting that Gomez has a record of engaging in similar behaviors before.
“The detective’s report notes that the defendant is escalating in his criminal activity,” the prosecutor said. “He tends to target female victims.”
But Gomez’s court-appointed attorney noted that his criminal record included a guilty plea on a trespassing charge and two ‘continued without finding’ cases.
“I don’t see a tremendous record there,” he said, in asking the judge to reduce bail to $500.
But the judge agreed with the Commonwealth and imposed the full bail as well as an order to stay away from Donnybrook Road and the victim.
An investigation into the incidents is ongoing.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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