A pervert who filmed a couple having sex through their window was found to have waged a four-year campaign of voyeurism that involved up to 90 women.
Jake Austin was caught when a horrified woman was ‘being intimate in the bedroom’ and saw a face peering into the ground floor window, which had the curtain partially drawn.
Police were called and seized his phone after finding him nearby the Norwich property. They also raided his home to look at his hard drive and desktop computer.
Checks revealed the 31-year-old had been spying on the woman for four months but also that he had invaded the privacy of scores more.
This included filming them through windows or gaps in blinds in various states of undress and ‘upskirting’ victims in supermarkets, pubs and in the street.
Most have never been identified by police and remain unaware that their privacy had been invaded.
Austin has now appeared at Norwich Crown Court for sentencing after previously admitting five charges of voyeurism and three counts of recording an image under clothing without consent.
The tearful defendant also pleaded guilty to three offences of making indecent images of children – including eight photos and 13 videos that were classed as the most serious type, Category A.
Jake Austin, 31, was caught when a horrified woman was ‘being intimate in the bedroom’ and saw a face peering into the ground floor window
Jailing him for 31 months, Judge Andrew Shaw condemned the ‘campaign of voyeurism and upskirting’ involving ‘multiple’ victims for the purposes of sexual gratification.
Women had been forced to go through the ‘indignity’ of identifying themselves in evidence uncovered by police.
Judge Shaw also said Austin’s actions caused the ‘gravest concern’ and he considered him to pose a high risk of serious harm to the public.
In victim impact statements read in court, some of the woman Austin spied on described the effect his offending had had on them.
One said: ‘This was a significant violation of my privacy and the comfort I should feel in my own home. This experience has made me much more guarded around strangers.’
Another revealed: ‘It is a very strange feeling knowing that someone has been watching you without your knowledge.
‘The fact that he decided to film me made me feel even more disturbed.’
A third described feeling ‘vulnerable’ when she learned she had been secretly filmed.
Judge Andrew Shaw condemned the ‘campaign of voyeurism and upskirting’ involving ‘multiple’ victims for the purposes of sexual gratification
‘When the officer told me, I was still breastfeeding my young daughter and this made me worried about a completely normal act and if strangers might use it for their own personal gain to take photos. It gave me a lot of anxiety,’ she said.
The court heard that he was arrested in March 2024 when the woman was having sex with her partner and ‘saw a man with his face pressed against the glass’.
Images found on Austin’s devices included one of her ‘sitting naked on her bed with a towel on her head’.
The voyeurism took place from June 2020 until his arrest but only six victims had been identified and contacted by Norfolk Police.
Andrew Oliver, defending, told the court last month his client had developed the ‘unhealthy’ obsession after he was involved in a ‘toxic’ relationship with an alcoholic which led to him suffering post-traumatic stress disorder.
But Austin, who had no previous convictions, accepted his actions were deliberate and was ‘very sorry’ for what he had done.
Outside court, investigating officer Detective Constable Matthew Hubbard said: ‘Austin’s offending represented a serious and sustained pattern of predatory behaviour.
‘He deliberately targeted women who were completely unaware they were being filmed and did so both in public and in the privacy of their own homes without their knowledge or consent.
The hearing at Norwich Crown Court was told most of the women Austin targeted had never been identified
‘He violated their privacy and I know that these crimes have had a profound impact on them.’
He added: ‘We would always encourage anyone who witnesses or experiences this kind of behaviour to report it to the police.
‘Voyeurism and upskirting can sometimes indicate escalating behaviour so reporting it allows us to build intelligence and work to intervene to prevent further harm.’
Austin, who lives in Norwich, was also put on the Sex Offenders register indefinitely and made the subject of a ten-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login