A truck stop in Chicopee, Massachusetts, is in hot water after a truck driver discovered a surveillance camera inside the restroom.
The incident occurred at the Pride truck stop on Burnett Road in Chicopee, Massachusetts.
According to store management, the camera was installed to counter “hate crimes” that occurred in the rest room.
Lawyer Zoe Falken says her client, a truck driver, was in the rest room when he noticed the camera near the stalls.
“My client is sitting on the toilet and he looks up and sees a camera in the corner of the ceiling. This is absolutely egregious.” Falken said.
Pride’s director of operations, Richard Hoffner, issued a statement on Monday afternoon, and said the camera was installed “in an effort to apprehend someone actively doing hate crimes on our premises.”
In the statement, Hoffner added that the camera was “in a common area and does not invade anyone’s privacy….Our intention is to turn this over to the police as soon as the person re-commits the crime, then remove the camera. It is not a live feed, it is stored in a secure location where no one has access but our Security (Department).”
The camera has since been removed.
A police investigation is currently underway.
Update:
According to MassLive.com, Pride’s CEO Robert Bolduc said the camera was installed because “he was sick of the anti-Obama graffiti that keeps appearing in his bathroom.”
