A sailor aboard a U.S. Navy ship was caught secretly filming female sailors while they used the bathroom, claims a shipmate who caught the alleged peeping Tom in the act.
The unnamed 33-year-old lieutenant was on the carrier USS John C. Stennis standing outside the women's bathroom with an electronic device last Thursday when a shipmate approached, the Navy Times reported.
The device was facing a ventilation grate and "positioned to view the interior of the female head," according to investigating documents obtained by the newspaper.
Upon seeing the woman shipmate approach, he said "sorry" and left.
She alerted ship security to the incident aboard the John C. Stennis, which is based in Washington state but at the time was performing training operations off Southern California.
The lieutenant's electronics were seized and an NCIS investigation is now underway into the suspect, who was on the ship for training.
"The Navy holds its personnel to the highest standards of conduct," Naval Air Forces spokeswoman Jeannie Groeneveld told the Navy Times. "We are committed to holding personnel accountable for their actions and preserving good order and discipline."
Stennis Commanding Officer Captain Mike Wettlaufer was also saddened by the incident, which comes a month after another sailor allegedly used a cellphone to record women in the shower aboard a submarine for 10 months.
"I am extremely disappointed in the alleged misconduct by a sailor temporarily embarked aboard our ship," he told the Navy Times.
But the captain praised the shipmate for speaking out against the lieutenant.
"An NCIS investigation commenced immediately because our shipmate took action."
