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Houston woman saw phone reach under restroom stall
A woman in a public restroom in Houston realized she wasn't in the bathroom alone after seeing a phone underneath the door of the stall. FOX 26's Damaliu Keith spoke to the woman and visited the bar where it happened.
HOUSTON - A woman in a public restroom in Houston soon realized she wasn't in the bathroom stall alone, at least not completely.
It happened near Downtown Houston. As Drusilla Bilton was using the restroom at a downtown area brewery, she saw an arm and a phone reach underneath the door of the bathroom stall.
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It happened Monday night when she was out with her husband and close friends. Now, not only are police investigating, so is the staff at the brewery.
"I was here for a friend's son's birthday. (How upsetting is this for you?) Extremely. I'm still navigating through this, didn't sleep much last night. We were here around 8:00, 8:15 last night and I had to use the restroom. I could see someone's forearm, the inner part of their arm and moving what appeared to be a camera, but probably just a large cell phone, trying to get an angle. (And you saw this from underneath the bathroom stall?) Underneath the door of the stall and my immediate reaction, I just screamed, and the person ran," Bilton explained.
She also said, "God is so amazing. This person, they think they have identified him in less than a 24-hour turn around."
"Yes, after some investigation, my bar staff is pretty attentive on faces. You see video of him running out the door. Where the cameras are set up, you can see someone run out the bathroom hallway, but then just out the front door, sprinting down the sidewalk, and then again along the side of the building," says the brewery manager, Tiare Austin.
His behavior is obviously suspicious, since customers typically don't leave the restroom and sprint from the business.
"I am ecstatic they identified him. I did not want it to happen to the next woman, man, boy or girl. I never imagined something like this would happen. I felt extremely violated," says Bilton.
"I've been a victim at younger moments of my life, two scenarios that are still triggering, so it's upsetting. I'm honestly very grateful it just took a little investigative work, and we found him," Austin says.
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This is certainly a reminder to be observant and cautious in public restrooms, particularly for parents.
Law enforcement is also reminding everyone that this behavior can escalate, and they encourage victims to report this crime.
The Houston Police Department has all the surveillance footage, the man's name, and is in the process of tracking him down.