4 days ago
Women filmed in bathroom without their consent, former housemate to be sentenced over violation
When Sarah* moved into her first Sydney share house, the Canadian expat thought it was a "completely safe, normal environment".
Months after moving out, she would find out it was the backdrop of a horrific violation of privacy and trust, perpetrated by her former male housemate.
Luis Alberto Cancino Mena had placed three female housemates under intimate surveillance without their knowledge or consent.
The 39-year-old man had set up a secret camera to film Sarah and two other women in a communal bathroom — including in the shower — and in one of their bedrooms.
After being called into a local police station, the 27-year-old said she sat in shock as she had to review one of several videos taken of her.
"I felt violated, scared, confused — I couldn't believe someone could do such a thing," Sarah said.
"It's something that you would see on TV or in movies but never something that you could imagine happening to you."
Court documents show that cleaners at the home located a camera device shaped like a pen on the ground of the bathroom before they pulled it apart and found that it was recording.
After removing the storage device card inside, they found files of themselves cleaning the bathroom and a woman taking a shower.
The property owner took it to police.
Officers found a recording of Cancino setting the camera up and said he "made full and frank admissions" when interviewed by police.
The documents also showed that one woman was recorded in both the shared bathroom and inside her bedroom, with videos saved on his laptop under a folder with her name.
That is where a folder labelled "Sarah" was also found.
All three victims were unaware of the camera and did not give Cancino consent to film them.
"It definitely put me on edge, made me trust people less because of it and I just want this chapter of my life closed so I can move on."
Cancino, from Chile, is expected to be sentenced on Thursday after pleading guilty to three counts of intentionally record intimate video/image without consent.
Court documents show Cancino is in Australia on a temporary visa, which is about to expire.
His passport was seized by police and the documents show he told police he intended to return to Chile and not return to Australia.
Sarah said she wants justice and has been attending each court appearance.
"It was definitely scary [seeing him in person again]. My heart was beating out of my chest … he's a predator, he's a criminal," Sarah said.
"It was an attack on women, and I don't think a person like that deserves to be here in Australia … ultimately I just want him to get what he deserves."
The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOSCAR) said there were 422 finalised charges relating to recording or threatening to record intimate images without consent in 2024.
The data shows an uptick to the previous year, with 267 finalised charges in 2023.
"Despite the recent increase in charges, the proportion of proven charges has remained similar in 2024 (43 per cent proven) compared to the previous year (48 per cent proven in 2023)," BOSCAR said in a statement.
Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre director Associate Professor Bridget Harris said it was hard to know just how common this is because there could be many cases that go undetected.
"We don't have the stats on this, but I would suspect, given other rates of technology-facilitated abuse, that gender and sexually diverse people are also experiencing high rates of digital voyeurism," Dr Harris said.
Dr Harris, who leads Monash Criminology, said more needs to be done to target the ideologies that drive this type of harm, recognising that it as a form of gendered control and sense of entitlement to someone's body.
She said often those most subjected to these harms are expected to try and prevent them.
"It's just another form of … safety work that women will do, or other targets will do to try and prevent violence from happening and the burden is really often with victim survivors, especially when there aren't enough mechanisms to help in detecting or regulating or stopping this harm."
Sarah said she wants to warn others in the rental market to stay vigilant, acknowledging it was yet "another thing women have to worry about."
"I think the rental market is so crazy… and we kind of let our guard down and let things slide just trying to get into a place," Sarah said.
"I know that something like this is not my fault.
"I didn't do anything to have this happen and there was nothing I could've done to prevent it. So speaking out, having my truth told, was important."
*Sarah's surname has been withheld for privacy reasons.
