The Times West Virginian

Local News

April 19, 2009

Two charged with invasion of privacy

FBI police officers allegedly taped girls trying on dresses

FAIRMONT — Two FBI police officers have been charged and one was arraigned Friday morning in Marion County magistrate court after videotaping high school girls who were trying on prom dresses at the Middletown Mall.

According to an FBI press release, the two Clarksburg-based employees were charged with criminal invasion of privacy and conspiracy to commit video voyeurism by the Marion County prosecuting attorney’s office.

Gary Sutton Jr., 40, was charged with criminal invasion of privacy and being a party to a crime. And according to WDTV, a warrant has been issued for Charles Brian Hommema of Buckhannon.

The charges stem from an event called the Cinderella Project that took place at the Middletown Mall in Fairmont that gave high school girls the opportunity to buy low-cost prom dresses. The event was sponsored by Hospice Care Corp. for the sixth year in a row and included $25,000 worth of dresses from Oliverio’s Bridal Boutique in Clarksburg.

The criminal complaint stated that the two men were on duty in the FBI’s satellite control room, which coincidentally is located at Middletown Mall. The two allegedly stopped a security camera over a makeshift dressing room that had been set up to allow the girls to try on dresses during the event.

The dressing rooms did not have ceilings, and the camera zoomed in and trained its focus on one particular dressing room for more than an hour. Several girls used that dressing room to try on prom dresses.

The complaint stated that Sutton and Hommema were the only people in the control room and the only ones able to control the movements of the camera.

The alleged activities were detected internally by the FBI and reported to the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General, prompting an investigation, according to the FBI release.

“The FBI is committed to the timely and full resolution of this matter, but must remain sensitive to the privacy concerns of any potential victims and their families,” the release stated. “The FBI has and continues to fully cooperate and support the investigation being conducted by the Office of the Inspector General and the Marion County Office of the Prosecuting Attorney.”

Calls to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office were referred to a toll-free number, 1-(800) CALL-FBI, and that office referred calls to the office of Marion County Prosecuting Attorney Pat Wilson, who was not available for comment Saturday.

Anyone with any information relevant to the investigation is asked to call 1-(800) CALL-FBI.

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