GREENVILLE, N.C. (WITN) – Police say they’re checking the cell phone of a man arrested Monday on secret peeping charges to see if there are any sexual activities involving children on it.
WITN has learned that Thomas Elliott was a volunteer at a Greenville elementary school.
Greenville police say the 21-year-old Elliott was arrested at Target on Greenville Boulevard Monday. Video obtained by WITN shows the man arrested by police placing his phone under a woman’s skirt.
Video shows when a shopper confronts Elliott:
Another shopper there started taking video of him with her cellphone after she said she noticed him following her around the store. She kept taking video that shows Elliott placing his phone on the floor under a woman’s skirt.
The woman taking that video posted the exchange between her and Elliott on social media, including police showing up at the store and placing him in handcuffs and taking him out of the store.
A Pitt County School spokesman says Elliott was a volunteer at Eastern Elementary School in Greenville.
“We are disturbed and deeply concerned by video footage of the individual that has been shared on social media and news outlets, and based on the footage, the individual will not be returning to our campuses as a volunteer or hired as an employee,” said Tom McClellan, school system spokesman.
McClellan said before volunteers and visitors are given campus access, they are screened through Raptor, a program that determines if they are listed in any sex offender databases.
Police said so far they haven’t found any inappropriate photos of children on the man’s cell phone.
A search warrant for the man’s phone said Elliott “denied any wrong doing and showed us (police) the recent pictures he had on his cellphone.” The warrant seeks among other things, video files, digital photographs, text messages, and “deleted information that may be recovered via a forensic examination.”
Elliott posted a $5,000 bond and had a first court appearance Tuesday in Greenville.
