h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

For about the last 6 months I have had a peeper watching me through the ground floor windows of my apartment. He is very bold--I have spoken to him, and he refuses to leave until I pick up the phone to call the police. He thinks I should be flattered with the attention. I'm not. The police haven't been able to catch him yet, and it's starting to make me nervous.

I've considered bringing fire ants to nest outside the windows, but then I'll have them to contend with. Also thought about growing poison ivy there, but the lawn service probably wouldn't care too much for that. When I keep the blinds closed the cat pushes them open, and he peeks through the cracks. Also, I get a little claustrophobic when totally closed in.

It occurred to me that the fine warped minds here at h2g2 might be able to help me come up with a solution, so if you have any ideas, please share them. This has gone way beyond funny now. Thanks!

What sort of house do you live in? Do you know any of your neighbours or isn't it that sort of place?
Someone upstairs in the dark opens their window and throws a bucket of very cold water over him. "So sorry, thought it was one of those damn cats again"
Keep your cat in the other room for a bit

Hmmm ... what you need is evidence to get the cops to do something about this. If you can get one and find a suitable place for it, rig up a video camera to record him invading your privacy. Or if he is so bold and you see him in your window, take a polaroid of him right then and there and THEN phone the police. If that doesn't help or work then get nasty. I'm talking traps here. You have a cat ... cats have litter boxes ... litter boxes have, well, litter ... leave soem of that litter outside your window for your peeper to tramp in. Pour water or sticky liquids like sodas or koolade onto the ground outside your window (in an effort to muddy or sticky up his shoes). Ants are a good idea too. If you have bees in your area, leave a glass of coke sitting near the window (outside), the sweet smell will attract a lazy swarm. Just some ideas ... Go to your apartment manager! Find out stalking laws and invasion of privacy laws in your area. ABOVE ALL, be safe! Make sure and lock your doors and windows at night and / or when you are home alone.

Just a message of sympathy sisterhood and encouragement, MoG, EoU. Keep us posted.

Is he someone you know / who knows you in another context? You say he thinks you should feel flattered by his attentions. Is there any third party other than the police you could involve. (eg if you know him from work involve your boss; if he is a bus-driver, report him to the bus company, etc).

I used to go to boarding school (all girls) and we used to get heaps of peeping toms.. We found the best thing to do was to turn off all the lights - send one person off to call the police, and then sit and watch him, we'd call out things like 'my dogs got a bigger d*** than that', or 'is that the best you can do'. Things like that, that show you are not 'playing the victim' as our boarding house mistress used to say. usuallu we managed to make him stay until the police got there, but if we didn't we always ken which way he had run off and could send the police hunting in that direction

i remember one time I was the designated 'watcher' (when the lights are off inside he couldn't see me) and i had to watch while he did all sorts of things. later when the police finally turned up, I had to describe his intimate parts to a male police officer and identify him in a 'penis file' (thankfully not a line up!!!) - thay caught him though...

Another anecdote - one time the senior boarding house had one (girls aged from 15-17) and they all ran outside with hockey sticks and softball bats etc and chased the poor (naked) guy up a tree!!!!

and yet another anecdote - we used to have this one guy who used to come back all the time, that the police just couldn't catch who used to wear a nappy, which he dropped to his ankles, and he had a belt with one of those 'itty-bitty-book lights' clipped on to it so we could see exactly what he was doing...Charming!!

Introduce him to H2G2. He'll then not be able to tear himself away from his computer and will forget about you. On second thoughts, I don't know if we want him here.

I agree with Random (Trillians Child, geddit??) we do not want him here!!!

I would advise getting a BIG, VICIOUS, dog, and introducing the two.
I doubt whether the pervert would return!!!
'G'

The main trick with these people is evidence. Taking the photo is a good idea. If you can take a digital one, then you can distribute it to your neighbours, and one of them will probably have met him, and thus know who he is.
Every time he turns up, make a note of when, how long for, and EXACTLY what he did. if he does anything illegal, then you have him.
And if you can get a teenage girl to change her jumper (with a swimsuite underneath) when he is watching, then you have him where it is very difficult to weedle out of. Also, get your neighbors to see which direction he leaves in when he goes, whoch will also help the police to catch him. EXACT timings will help them figure out his working habits, and thus narrow down the places that they need to go to look for him.
Once they know who he is, you can get some form of restraining order to keep him at least (... metres/yards) away.
That should help for now, and I will ask my friends and see if they can think of anything else, then get back to you.

The dirty pig!!! My first reaction would be to get a few male friends to give him a good hiding. It's an attractive idea but violence will solve nothing and probably make him turn nasty and threatening towards you. I like the bucket of water idea. Stand at the ground floor window where he can see you and send a few friends upstairs with buckets of cold water to throw down at him. All have a good laugh - he'll probably be so mortified he won't return. Setting up a video camera is the more sensible idea. You could get him convicted and save another woman from falling victim to his sick perversion.

Good luck!

Another idea!

Make the water HOT (or, better than that, SECOND-HAND!!!)

'G'

You could get a local reporter to do a news report on peeping toms and have them stake out your house and film the low life. Then the police have their evidence and the reporter get a community service award.

OR

Get a bear trap. (A bear trap is a large metal trap that clamps round a bears leg , usually breaking it and impossible to get off by oneself, when it's stepped on.) Set the bear trap up where the lowlife stands, secure it to the ground, and cover it with leaves. When Tom returns CRACK you have him and the evidence you need.

OR

Ask some of your biggest friends to hide in the area and the Tom shows up, have them "impress" on Tom that you are not flattered by the attention and would like for him to stop.

Some small holes in the garden right outside the window would be a good solution - think of them as 'ankle-breakers'

And don't underestimate the value of barbed wire. But getting neighbours to help scare the sod off is the best solution.

Good luck!

Vietnamese mantrap. Dig a hole about 2 to 3 feet deep and place sharpen sticks pointing up in the bottom. Coat the sticks with dung to cause a nasty infection.

That might me a touch illegal however.

Thanks! Won't work, because my place doesn't have anyone right above it. And you should see how crazy the cat gets when banished to the bedroom. That is the second highest form of punishment for her. I do appreciate the help, though.

Anyway, if Spiderman catch him, that s not going to be nice for him.

So if the "recycled" water idea won't work, and the cat won't be banished, then the evidence ideas are the ones to go with.

I REALLY like the ideas about getting a local reporter to do a piece about Peeping Toms. They might be willing to organise some night vision cameras, and things like that.

Would the owner of the appartment blocks go for increased security lighting? Some of these are movement sensitive.

If he's hanging around near your window after dark, you could try getting hold of a powerful flashgun. Quite often, secondhand manual flashguns can be purchased fairly cheaply at photographic stores.
If he's looking directly at it when it goes off, it'd certainly disrupt his night vision for a while, and could even be quite painful if he was close enough. It could attract other people's attention to his presence, and give him the impression he's being photographed even if he wasn't. The darker it was when you tried it, the better the effect.

Depending on your local laws, and how you feel about such things, it may even be possibly to get hold of somewhat more powerful military-style strobe units that are specifically designed to temporarily blind people. Ask at your local army surplus store.

WOW! What a lot of response! Thought there was only 1 reply when I answered before (I'm new to all this) so here's the deal.

Can't use traps, etc. because of liability issues. Wouldn't want to get the wrong person.

He has been watching 2 other women in the complex, we have all filed police reports. None of us knows him from anywhere. The police are taking it seroiusly, several cars in a perimiter, dogs, quick response.

Photos through the window at night will just reflect the glass, can't afford surveilance equipment, would prefer not to have reporters camped in the back yard--although if it doesn't stop, that is an option.

I am going to get something sticky and smelly to put on the ground under the windows, that way the cops will be able to use the dogs to track him and he will be hard pressed to get out of it, claiming coincidence. Once they get him I will install a motion detecting light so I'll know if he comes back.

Thanks to everybody for your help! I REALLY appreciate it, as this is an uncomfortable situation to be in.

Potholer is a genius - I love this idea. It would be so funny so see the expression on the pervert's face!