The case against the Queens man accused of taking upskirt video in the F train station in DUMBO has been dismissed and sealed. Sources in the Brooklyn DA's office told us that the case was dropped because the victim did not want to testify, and another person familiar with the incident says the victim was worried her name would appear in the press if she cooperated with prosecutors.
The alleged perpetrator was confronted by the victim and one witness who alerted her to what was happening as she climbed the steep subway steps one morning back in August. "I noticed he was holding his arm a bit outstretched, close to the woman in front of him walking up the stairs," the witness told us. "It seemed odd, so I watched the guy as we walked up the ramp. He passed the woman, then slowed again as we reached the next set of stairs, and let her pass him. That is when I confirmed that he was filming under her skirt." When the witness and the victim confronted the suspect in the subway, they say his cell phone camera was still running.
After we reported the incident, the NYPD put up wanted posters in the DUMBO F station and soon made an arrest, charging a 29-year-old graphic designer and musician with unlawful surveillance (a felony). The defendant's next court appearance was scheduled for November 13th, but this week the Brooklyn DA's office told us the charges had been dropped.
One New York City prosecutor, who would only speak on condition of anonymity, offers some insight about the challenges encountered with these kinds of cases: "Reporters frequently stalk our sex crime victims, talking to their doormen, neighbors, family members, etc.—a total invasion of privacy, whether or not the name appears in print. I know of several cases where witnesses or victims stopped cooperating because of this, including some who did not even want close family members to know they were the victim of sex crime."
We called the witness again after learning that the charges had been dropped, and she refused to answer any further questions, stating only that "she wanted to protect the victim."
