A North Yorkshire man told police he "felt horny" when covertly filming a woman using the toilet.
Andrew Simpson, 52, of Kingfisher Drive, Pickering, admitted an offence voyeurism when he recently appeared at York Magistrates' Court.
He was sentenced at the same court on Wednesday, 16th October 2024.
Voyeurism is an offence under section 67 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. It has a maximum sentence of 26 weeks' custody and/or an unlimited fine on summary conviction; 2 years' custody on conviction on indictment.
Magistrates heard that Simpson, who had no previous convictions, used a covert spy pen to record the intimate footage of his unsuspecting victim using the toilet.
Few details are provided of the actual offence, which may be due to the proximity of the victim - who has a statutory entitlement to anonymity - to the defendant.
The woman later told police that she felt "disgusted and dirty" by Simpson's sordid conduct.
Kevin Blount, mitigating, told the court that as soon as Simpson realised his filming had been discovered, he immediately confessed to the police and his employer.
He had been drinking heavily at the time of the offence, but had since managed to moderate his alcohol intake.
The court heard that Simpson, who has a "responsible, well paid job" has been employed by the same company for more than a decade. He remains in employment, despite the company's awareness of his crime.
Mr Blount added that Simpson had been diagnosed with autism, which affected his understanding of social cues.
Magistrates were of the opinion that Simpson's offence was so serious that only a custodial sentence was appropriate. However, given his prospects of rehabilitation, they elected to suspend the custodial term.
Simpson was sentenced to 17 weeks' custody suspended for 18-months, with the requirement that he completes up to 15 days' rehabilitation activity.
He was ordered to pay £154 surcharge and £85 prosecution costs. The court likely ordered the payment of compensation to the woman, although reports are silent on that point.
Simpson was also made subject to sexual harm prevention order for the next 7 years.
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