Rochester Man Sentenced to Probation in ‘Peeping Tom’ Case
Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Rochester man was sentenced today for secretly recording a video of a woman while she was using the bathroom inside a local grocery store.
38-year-old Patrick John Gaffron was charged about a year ago after Rochester police investigated an incident that was reported at the Crossroads Hy-Vee location in April 2023. According to the criminal complaint, a woman told police that she confronted a man after catching him recording her in the restaurant. She stated that the man fled from the store and ran into the nearby residential neighborhood.
The charges say investigators reviewed surveillance videos recorded by the store's security cameras and were able to identify Gaffron as the suspect. He was taken into custody three days after the incident.
READ MORE: Man Accused of Filming Woman in Bathroom at Rochester Store
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Gaffron was charged with a felony count of interference with privacy. Under a plea agreement, that charge was dismissed and was replaced by a gross misdemeanor count of the same crime.
Gaffron was then allowed to enter a Norgaard plea to the lesser charge. The plea means he admits he is guilty, but does not remember his actions due to drug and/or alcohol impairment.
The plea deal indicated that Gaffron acknowledged that the evidence shows that he went into the restroom and placed his cell phone in a stall that was occupied by the woman through a crack in the wall. The document also states that his intent was to record or photograph an image of the victim’s "intimate parts" without her consent.
Gaffron was sentenced today to two years on probation. He was also ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.
The Minnesota Court System's online records show the Rochester man was also sentenced to probation after he was convicted of interfering with privacy in Winona County in 2016. The court record says, in that case, he was accused of recording video of a woman in a restroom at Winona Health.
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