Photo: Asinobi’s devices
February 19, 2022 – Santa Barbara County, Ca.
Once the era of “skeleton” keys and the classic keyhole associated with them was over and their images were relegated to the work of cartoonists or the imaginations of teenage readers of The Hardy Boys mysteries, individuals bent on observing other folks during private moments—commonly referred to as “peeping Toms”—found themselves forced to stand on toilet seats while peering over restroom partitions.
Today, however, even that creepy behavior has become anachronistic with the advent of digital technology. Evidence of that came with the February 15 th arrest of 21-year-old Isla Vista resident Justin Asinobi. According to Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Public Information Officer Raquel Zick, Asinobi fell under the watchful gaze of law enforcement pursuant to “a report of a video recording device that was found in the bathroom of a residence” in an Isla Vista apartment complex.
SBSD detectives, investigating the origins of the recording device, identified Asinobi as a suspect and contacted him at his residence on the afternoon of February 15 th . A quick search of the premises led to the discovery of “several surreptitious recording devices” that had apparently been used by Asinobi in his surveillance and recording “of victims without their
knowledge.”
Asinobi was taken into custody at the scene and transported to Santa Barbara County Jail, where he was booked on a misdemeanor charge of invasion of privacy by means of an electronic device and a felony charge of eavesdropping. He remains in custody with his bail set at $400,000.
Photo: Courtesy SBSD Isla Vista Foot Patrol
