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Man arrested for video recording in Lancaster Starbucks bathroom [updated]

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The incident was reported at the Starbucks located at 855 West Avenue K, Suite 105, in Lancaster.
The incident was reported at the Starbucks located at 855 West Avenue K, Suite 105, in Lancaster.

LANCASTER – A 38-year-old man was arrested Thursday on suspicion of placing a cellphone camera inside the women’s bathroom at a Starbucks in Lancaster, authorities announced.

Antonio Serrano was taken into custody after detectives retrieved a photo of Serrano from the cellphone that was allegedly used to secretly record females using the toilet at the Starbucks located at 855 West Avenue K in Lancaster, according to Deputy Joshua Stamsek of the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station. Serrano told detectives he had been video-taping women and children using the restroom for a couple of months, sheriff’s officials said.

The victim said the cellphone was under the sink propped up with paper towels to direct the camera at the toilet.
The victim said the cellphone was under the sink propped up with paper towels to direct the camera at the toilet.

The investigation began after a Starbucks customer on July 9 reported that a cellphone was tucked under a sink with its camera pointing toward the toilet inside the single-occupancy women’s restroom.

The woman told KTLA that her 5-year-old son noticed the cellphone, which was propped up by paper towels under the sink.

“I noticed that he was staring at the sink a little bit perplexed and I asked him what was wrong and he said, ‘Mommy, why is there a phone under there?’” the woman said in a KTLA interview.

The Lancaster Sheriff’s Station was immediately notified of the incident, and deputies recovered the cellphone, which was taped to the sink’s pipe lining in the restroom, according to Stamsek.

“Lancaster Sheriff Station detectives, with the assistance of the Los Angeles County Sheriff Department’s Fraud and Cyber Crimes Bureau, were able to retrieve a photo of a suspect off of the cellphone. Lancaster Station detectives were able to identify the suspect and arrest him for 647(j)(3)(A) P.C. , which is videoing in a bathroom without consent,” Stamsek stated in a news release. “They also discovered the suspect was in possession of a government document with a false seal and additionally charged him with 472 P.C.”

Numerous victims

Serrano, a transient in the Lancaster area, is being held in lieu of $20,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in Antelope Valley Superior Court on Monday, July 20, detectives said in a news release from the Sheriff’s Information Bureau.

Antonio Serrano (booking photo courtesy LASD)
Antonio Serrano (booking photo courtesy LASD)

“A preliminary investigation revealed there might be numerous victims and additional locations in the Lancaster and Los Angeles areas, due to the fact that the suspect had additional cell phones and SIM [Subscriber Identity Module] cards in his possession at the time of the arrest,” the sheriff’s news release states.

“The suspect also told detectives he has been video-taping women and children using the restroom for [a] couple [of] months. Detectives confirmed this information upon reviewing the videos recovered from the cell phones and SIM cards,” the sheriff’s news release states.

Lancaster Station detectives are asking for the public’s help in locating additional victims who used the women’s bathroom at the Starbucks, located at 855 West Avenue K, from June through July 9. At this time no additional victims have been identified.

If you believe you are a victim and/or have information about this incident, please contact the Lancaster Station at 661-948-8466. To remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-TIPS (8477).

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Editor’s note: Story updated to include booking photo and additional information from the Sheriff’s Information Bureau.

 

 

59 comments for "Man arrested for video recording in Lancaster Starbucks bathroom [updated]"

  1. He alreday admitted people!
    So there goes all your criminals defense!
    (Whoever fits the jacket)
    One more time the law wins!

  3. Funny thing is how ppl can’t believe the those involved in criminal activity will cop out what they did. No one knows exactly why, it’s an individual thing maybe even a purging of sorts. But they are quick to accuse those that put their lives on the
    line to protect us of being liars! There are too many good
    law abiding ppl in the AV that are not as some would say, “targeted” by the cops. Those that are not law abiding should be the ones targeted! They’re onviously living a life that’s worthy of being targeted.

    • I agree absolutely. Repeatedly, investigations have shown that the sheriff’s department is not law abiding. They should certainly be targeted.

      So why do so many people defend them?

      • Good thing we have the sheriffs department here to arrest people like him. Keeping our children and women safe. Thank you to our sheriff’s. Law abiding citizens appreciate you.

        • You forgot to thank the feds for dealing with our law breaking sheriff’s department. Too bad the feds only used financial punishment. A bunch of arrests, or maybe a few public executions, would have really made the point, don’t you think?

  4. Who the hell is in charge of cleaning the restrooms at this Starbucks? Restrooms should be checked hourly, and a thorough cleaning after closing on a daily basis. Someone isn’t doing their job or they would have seen the paper towels and phone.

    • I’ve worked on my fair share of plumbing. Near as I can tell no one cleans the underside of a sink…ever.

      • Exactly my point….half a@@ work ethics! Everything in a public restroom should be disinfected on a daily basis!

      • Don’t tell me your an Obama supporter. I wouldn’t doubt it though.

        • I have to be an Obama supporter to question someone who seems to be mislead by … I dunno …someone out there who doesn’t like Obama? There is no such thing as an “Obama phone”.

          Reagan started a program so that no one would be caught without a phone, because basically he acknowledged that if you can’t afford a phone there is no way up. How do you get a job? Apply and then just stand there where they can find you?

          The world moved on, and twenty years later the president recognized that employers expected to be able to call the applicant and get immediate response, because of course EVERYONE had a cell phone…and under that president the program was extended to cell phones instead of land line phones. That president was GWBush.

          I get it proud Republican, you want to put down Obama in any way possible regardless of facts. But I like facts.

          • THIS, Thank you Tim Scott for explaining this and clearing it up. Sadly it doesn’t matter. People like him will never be happy with anyone that is in the office.

    • i wonder if it was one of the 67 transients a day Rex claimed were coming to Lancaster on Metrolink. What a clown.

    • Was it one of the 67 people a day that Rex said was being sent here on Metro link? One of his many delusions.

      • I rode down to Union Station on the Metro Link last Wednesday, my ticket was checked both directions. Freeloaders seem to be in check.

  6. I use that restroom but you better believe I would never show my face up to admit that one of the victims is me. My goodness, I have three kids – my private is as round as the toilet seat – I would never show my face as evidence. I would be ashamed. It’s stretched out to the max – any man that records me will get more than he bargains for.

    He is in jail and hopefully he will get a long time for doing such a perverted thing. What a violation to women and children. But I can see how he got in there – anyone can go into any bathroom at that very location – everyone is so busy on their computers that no one is watching who goes in or out. On another note, I wouldn’t be surprised that they are in SO many public bathrooms that you use, here or in the valley. I NEVER go to gas station bathrooms for this very reason – I don’t trust any of the attendants. This will not be the last time you hear about this – it’s a fact that it happens more than you know – it’s just a matter of someone sitting on the toilet long enough to notice one.

    Thankful for the police who did an INCREDIBLE job with their investigation – they always come through. I am proud of them – one more criminal off the streets.

  7. Good riddance! !
    Another criminal behind bars YEHYEAH!
    Now Im going to start following this case and push for him to get the most years behind bars as possible!

    • Go get ’em. Unfortunately reading the applicable law it looks like that “most possible” is only one. Maybe they can add some charges if they can prove distribution, or if they find other creepy stuff in the guy’s possession. I don’t think the government document with a false seal is going to add a lot of time, but didn’t look it up.

      • If he’s guilty! The police probably planned this whole thing! What happened to innocent until… are we just going to accept the police version!

    • He lost his phone like a week before the 4Th of July, so it’s impossible that he did it.
      Last time I saw him, he was sad because in the phone, he had his work contacts.
      SO…. everyone is innocent, till proven guilty.
      I’m his witness.

      • I have lost a cell phone. And the first thing I did was shut it off.
        If he did lose it why then was it still on 11 days later.
        Makes no sense!

        • That does make for an interesting case. I can’t say that I have actively shut off phones that I have lost. I didn’t do contracts and it was easy enough just to let the month run out on a phone rather than screw around getting it shut off. Assuming Sara isn’t the only person who he told that he had lost his phone, and phone use records match up, he may be able to make a defense out of that…and it may well be a valid defense. (ie maybe he really didn’t do it) I’ve been trying to get my head around the idea of a guy leaving his own photos on a peeper phone anyway, and unless the cops can demonstrate that this guy has the brains of a turnip I’d wonder about whether he was guilty.

      • Bet he can’t prove he “lost” his phone. He is a sick and twisted individual… Hope he rots

        • As a curiosity, if you lost a phone how would you go about proving that you had?

          “I don’t have it,” seems difficult to prove in itself.

          If it turns up a week later in the couch cushions, does that mean that when you said you lost it you were lying?

          In short, I agree with you…I’d bet that he can’t prove that he lost his phone either, because I don’t see any way that anyone who lost a phone could…but that doesn’t convince me that the guy didn’t lose his phone.

          Interesting case.

          • Report the phone lost or stolen to your carrier, 11 days was plenty of time to inform them. By day 2 figure you are better off calling it in, Also it could not have been in there more than 72hrs recording as the battery would have died. This phone was only in there for a day or so at best.

            There was no way this phone was recording for 11 days, There is no way this phone was recording before your 72hrs of kept surveillance roll off.

            This phone records will be subpoenaed so they can see the ping and cell tower records and they will be able to follow this phone.

        • he can actually prove he lost his phone. all they have to do is look at Starbucks surveillance video and see if they see him entering the Starbucks during June – July. because if someone did steal his phone obviously he wouldn’t be on camera. and they can prove he’s innocent.

          • Maybe. Immediate question comes to mind about how long that footage is maintained. Last place I worked that had surveillance only held 72 hours worth. If we got robbed we knew it, obviously, and if we had a sticky finger cashier we knew it at the end of the shift when we ran the drawer, so really three days was way more than we had any real use for.

            Another issue would be that if the system were disabled, even briefly, at any time the prosecutor could say that there was no certainty that he hadn’t been there during that time.

            Good thinking though!

          • I wonder what the statistics are about these type of things happening in men’s bathrooms or fitting rooms?

      • You guys need to chill and not get so vigilante and vicious. You’re the scary ones. Like Sara said, he had lost his phone. It was probably stolen and some freak used it for this. You’re the type that would have burned ladies alive back in time in Salam, saying they were witches. Vicious and evil to act in such a way. Until proven he was the one stop; small minded people like you that get violent ideas against other people should be locked up for sure.

        • My God you are an idiot. If your phone is stolen, the first thing you do is call the phone company to report it. Then they’ll turn it off for you so people don’t use the damn thing to hike up your bill and cause fraudulent charges. 11 days later and it’s still on?! Yeah right. Of course he’s gonna say that it was stolen.

          • Yeah you can turn off the service from that phone but people can still charge it and use it for camera uses or on WiFi …

          • My GOD you are an idiot! My month to month plan has unlimited minutes! Nobody can hike up my bill.

            Okay, sorry. You probably aren’t an idiot. You just jumped to conclusions that your circumstances apply to everyone.

      • I see all your points of view. I know him too, at first I was really angry because we treated him as part as our family but he never disrespected us. Even if they shut off the phone they can still record. So I do believe in until proved guilty. Imagine if one of you where accused for something you didn’t do. Leaving behind family that need you.

      • In a report I read today he admitted it! Not only that but he was in possession of MULTIPLE cell phones with MULTIPLE sim cards and possibly did this in MULTIPLE locations! Might want to take a good look at where you stand before you stick up for someone that already said they did it and then you may want to analyze the rest of your friends because you keep horrible company! He makes me sick and the more people that come forward the better! He filmed women and children! You should be ashamed of yourself!

        • Why should anyone be ashamed of themselves? Based on available information the case was interesting. You now have additional information that makes it a different case.

          Now comes the big question…how credible is your new information?

          Has the local sheriff’s department been caught spewing to the press to get a “conviction in the media” without really being able to back it up in court before? Well, yes, in fact they have. How about we all pump the brakes and see where this winds up before we condemn the guy?

        • When I saw this first they had no evidence until about 4:30 pm I posted this about 4pm. Like I said innocent until proven guilty. He obviously admitted it and he deserves to be in jail and more but that’s up to the law. I just put my point of view because when I first saw this this morning I completely had been angry at him and like someone posted about If someone was accused to being a witch they would believe them and burned them.without even thinking or asking their point of view. I just know a lot of innocent people have also been accused and later the truth comes out. But yes Antonio is guilty and got what he deserved.

      • Just a picture of him is not enough, They need to prove that he was in possession of the camera by
        1 find evidents will use of phone by records of calls made up to that day ( most people will use the phone daily
        2 Search his computer Other Cellphones owned and Flash Drives for pictures made by Phone

      • You’re his witness to what watching people use the restroom? He ADMITTED IT! You’re obviously beyond special so to speak. I will be more than happy to report your witness status.

        • You are so right! I wish people would read all the stories before they say anything. I have been following this story from the very beginning and know more than I can say but I will say this…any person that RECORDS CHILDREN using the restroom for their enjoyment deserves to rot in hell PERIOD!

      • Sara… The article alleges that “The suspect also told detectives he has been video-taping women and children using the restroom for [a] couple [of] months. Detectives confirmed this information upon reviewing the videos recovered from the cell phones and SIM cards,” the sheriff’s news release states.”

        So your witness testimony would be worthless for this case! Because whether he had lost “a” cell phone or not, he has allegedly admitted to using one as a recording device under the Starbucks sink.

      • Too bad they have evidence that states he was recording way back before July 4th like May 1st

  9. What a weird place Lancaster is. We have a mayor spying us from the skies and perverts spying on us from bathrooms. No wonder I spend my time and money elsewhere.

    • Lancaster: The Land that Time Forgot.
      What a bizarre place. Spy planes, crazy mayor, crazy people.
      So glad not to be there.

      • Waaaaah waaaah waaaaah “we hate Lancaster so much.” Watch the news every once in a while, I’d venture to guess this happens and could happen anywhere else. The location doesn’t dictate the criminal. He’s a piece of trash obviously, but if him having a phone in Lancaster is enough to make you cry about the city itself, then you don’t belong as a substantial part of any community, to be honest.

      • If I was fortunate to be able to afford to live elsewhere and equally support my family in the way that I do, best believe that I would relocate. That being said, for now this is home and so we all just make the best of it that we can because home is what you make it, regardless of the environment. But, for the record, when I do move one day….and I will…………I promise you that I won’be be like the others who claim to not live here, but still feel the urge to lurk on the AV Times and comment about an area they hate so much, and are not a part of. I mean, if you were lucky enough to move out and on………..then move on already. Enjoy your current zip code and leave the rest of us poor trashy people to rot in our own community.

        • Funny but true…. Hope things get better for you and your family real soon…. And whether you decide to move out of the AV at that point, then that decision is yours and your family’s alone and no one else’s!

        • You want a better community do you part, you see something wrong report it, don’t be one of those someone else will take care of it. Don’t look away because it doesn’t involve you, Get the law involved and wipe your hands clean of being involved.

  10. Glad this perv is caught. Now he won’t have to break the law and invade the privacy of citizens to watch people using the toilet; it’ll happen all around him, all day long in jail.