WHITEHALL, Ohio — Whitehall police are warning residents about a registered sex offender who they say was taking videos of women and young girls at local stores and parks.
“He's actively recording women and touching himself while doing so,” said Whitehall Division of Police Lieutenant Tanner Williams.
Williams said on Oct. 20, a young girl told Walmart staff a man was following her closely and she didn't feel comfortable.
“When we reviewed the video back to the original complaint, it did appear that he tried to upskirt or shoot a video up the skirt of a young juvenile female in the toy aisle at Walmart,” Williams explained.
They stopped Daniel Shope, who denied doing anything wrong. He was arrested and charged with pandering obscenity involving a minor.
When Whitehall police got a search warrant for his phone, they found dozens of videos.
“In addition to what occurred on that day at Walmart, there were about 15 videos just from that incident. There were also videos of him recording juveniles at a park. There were ladies at a convenience store that looks like maybe he works at,” Williams said.
Police haven't identified the park but are continuing to investigate and find out where and how many potential victims there could be.
“This guy is certainly a predator. There could be tens of victims, there could be hundreds of victims, unfortunately,” Williams said.
According to Whitehall police reports, Shope is a registered sex offender. He was found guilty of third-degree sexual battery in Licking County in 2014. He was also arrested on the Olentangy bike path for public indecency, engaging in a sex act in Franklin County in 2021.
“I feel for the victims. I have young kids myself. I couldn't imagine that if this happened to one of my children, how upset I would be, how violated I would feel, how violated they would feel,” Williams said.
Whitehall police said more charges are likely to be filed against Shope.