A young woman caught an older man spying on her through a hole in a bathroom door as she prepared to take a bath.
David Cosgrove’s victim had grown suspicious and started filming on her phone through the gap.
She caught him squatting down and peering through the hole at a property in Fife in April 2020.
Dunfermline Sheriff Court heard that the woman is now 19 years old.
Cosgrove, 48, of Lasswade, Midlothian, appeared in court to admit the offence of voyeurism under the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act.
He pled guilty to observing the young woman doing a private act by peering through a hole in a bathroom door without her permission while she was in a state of undress and preparing to take a bath.
Door hole shock
Procurator fiscal depute Azrah Yousaf told the court Cosgrove had previously removed the bathroom door lock, which left a small hole in the door handle, making it possible to look in from outside.
On the date of the offence the girl had become suspicious when Cosgrove entered the bathroom as she prepared to use it.
The fiscal said: “She was not fully undressed at that stage and felt as though the accused was trying to watch her.
“She began to record on her mobile phone camera.
“She held it up to the previously-mentioned hole and saw on the screen the accused squatting down on the other side of the door, attempting to look through the hole on the handle into the bathroom.
“The complainer got a fright and stopped filming.”
She did not tell anyone else about the incident until June this year, when she provided the footage to police, leading to Cosgrove’s arrest.
‘Entirely of good character’
Defence lawyer Andrew Aitken said he would reserve his plea in mitigation for sentencing but highlighted Cosgrove’s crime was more than three years ago and he has not committed any offences since.
Mr Aitken said Cosgrove was a man with no previous convictions and “entirely of good character”, who has pled guilty at the earliest opportunity.
Sheriff Francis Gill adjourned sentencing until October 11 to obtain background reports and placed Cosgrove on the Sex Offenders Register.
He has been admitted to bail with a special condition not to contact his victim.
For more local court content visit our dedicated page, or join us on Facebook.
