SHERWOOD, Ore. -- A registered sex offender was arrested after police said he was taking under-skirt photographs of women inside of a Target department store.
Police said they were notified last week by the store on SW Tualatin Sherwood Rd. that surveillance cameras recorded a man in the act of taking photographs underneath women's skirts as they were shopping. The man returned to the store Wednesday, and store security called police.
VIDEO: Store surveillance video
Sherwood police arrested Matthew Navaie, 22, and charged him with four misdemeanor counts of invasion of personal privacy.
The store's surveillance video clearly shows a young man approach a woman in a store aisle. Police say the man in the video is Matthew Navaie. The video shows the suspect hesitate as he holds the phone behind her, to be sure he got a good shot. After taking the photo, Navaie loops around and returns a second time, checks to make sure no one is watching, and then goes in for not one but two more photos.
The unassuming woman doesn't notice a thing and the suspect casually walks away.
IMAGES: Brazen suspect takes under-skirt photos
“He was pretty brazen, he came right up behind the women while they were looking at something on the shelves and get behind them and photographed up their skirts,” said Capt. Jim Reed with the Sherwood Police.
“It's disgusting, that's all I can say. It's very disgusting,” said shopper Missy Love.
“I think it's kind of depraved,” said John Stewart, another shopper at the store.
Police seized Navaie's cell phone and later searched his home computer. Police say they found child pornography images on his computer, so Navaie also faces four counts of encouraging sexual abuse of a child.
Neighbors KGW spoke with said they had no idea Navaie was a registered sex offender, but others told KGW they had heard stories about him acting inappropriately with children. Some neighbors even admitted to keeping their kids away from him.
His family declined to speak with reporters as they left the Washington County Courthouse.
Sherwood PD said anyone with information about this crime or anyone who thinks they might be a victim is asked to call their local police department.
Navaie was scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on August 5th at 10:30 a.m.
KGW Reporter Amanda Burden contributed to this report.
