Police issue arrest warrant after hidden camera found at east Hamilton Tim Hortons

Police have issued an arrest warrant for a 27-year-old Hamilton man after a video-recording device was found inside an east-end Tim Hortons bathroom last week.

On Sept. 22, Hamilton police were called to investigate reports of voyeurism after a cellphone was found recording in a women's restroom stall at the Tim Hortons at 30 Queenston Rd.

Const. Indy Bharaj previously told The Spectator that a customer went to the women's washroom and observed a cellphone covered with toilet paper and propped up in a coffee cup within the stall."

The cellphone, which was recording at the time, was seized as evidence.

In a Facebook post sent to The Spectator, a disposable coffee cup covered in toilet paper can be seen on the floor between the toilet and the napkin disposal bin. There was a small hole in the toilet paper where the cellphone camera could be seen.

Speaking to The Spectator Friday, Emily Hasler - who originally posted about the incident - said the phone was discovered by her sister-in-law just moments after she had taken her daughter to the washroom.

The woman called Hasler for assistance as she waited for police.

Hasler said her sister-in-law found the phone propped up in a Tim Hortons cup that had been cut to hold the phone and was plugged into a portable battery pack.

The sister-in-law alerted staff to the presence of the phone, and it was immediately removed from the washroom.

In a release Monday, police said the suspect is not an employee of the restaurant.

He is also wanted by Hamilton police for charges including theft under $5,000, possession and failure to comply with probation. The Halton Police Service is also looking for the man for failing to appear in court.

Police urge anyone with information to contact Division 2 criminal investigation branch Det. Const. Lindsay Filice at 905-546-2921 or the on-duty staff sergeant at 905-546-2963.

Ritika Dubey is a reporter at The Spectator. rdubey@thespec.com