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An arrest warrant has been issued for an Akron man accused of videotaping a young girl without her knowledge.
James P. Simpson, 47, of CR 1200W, Akron, faces charges of child exploitation, a Class C felony, and voyeurism, a Class D felony.
According to count I of the charging information, "James P. Simpson did knowingly or intentionally possess, manage, produce, sponsor, present, exhibit, photograph, film, videotape or create a digitized version of a performance or incident that included sexual conduct by a child under 18 years of age ..."
Count II of the charging information says, "... James P. Simpson did knowingly or intentionally peep into an area where an occupant of the area reasonably can be expected to disrobe, without the person's consent, by means of a camera, video camera, or any other type of video recording device ..."
Simpson allegedly made recordings of a minor girl in various stages of undress without her knowledge. The video contains footage of the girl and an adult woman. Neither person in the video seemed to know they were being recorded.
Police believe Simpson used a video equipment hidden in an air purifier in the girl's bedroom to make the recordings.
The video was discovered after Simpson's wife tried to play the disc in her vehicle. The disc got stuck in the CD player and she took the car to a local dealership for service.
The car was taken to a Holland, Mich., service vendor where the DVD was removed. The service vendor viewed the DVD and turned it over to Holland police.
Holland police notifed Warsaw police. A Warsaw officer questioned the local car dealership regarding the owner of the vehicle.
Police showed the DVD to the woman who identifed the subjects in the video.
When police went to Simpson's house, they reportedly found a small television, a DVD player and a wireless receiver in an armoire. The woman said the DVD player was purchased recently and said Simpson was the only person who would have access to the equipment.
The warrant for Simpson's arrest was issued Thursday, but he has not yet been apprehended.
The incident remains under investigation by the Warsaw Police Department.
