Naked Peeping Tom wearing Ronald Reagan mask caught on camera in Vestavia Hills
By Carol Robinson | crobinson@al.com
Vestavia Hills, AL
A Vestavia Hills couple got quite the surprise on New Year's Eve when a nude man wearing a presidential mask creeped into their breezeway.
The man, who was naked except for what appeared to be a Ronald Reagan rubber mask covering his head and a sock covering his private parts, ran off when Jersey Belle's Danielle Yancey and her husband spotted him. The ordeal, however, was caught on their home security video and later posted to Facebook as a warning to neighbors and others.
"I know a lot of people are laughing about it and, honestly, I got a chuckle from it later, but at the same time, it's very concerning,'' Danielle Yancey said. "I don't know what he was planning on doing."
Screenshot
Yancey's husband, Bart, had just taken out the trash and returned inside when he caught a glimpse of a shadow in the breezeway. The trespasser had already opened the gate and entered when Bart Yancey yelled to him. He then followed him briefly while he called 911 from his cell phone.
Vestavia Hills police responded to the scene, but weren't able to find the man. "It was so cold outside,'' Yancey said. "The police said he wouldn't last long outside nude like that."
She said multiple theories have been discussed, including that it was a dare, a lost bet, or teenage New Year's Eve party gone out of control. "He could have been messed up on drugs or alcohol, and in that mindset you don't what he would do to someone else," Yancey said.
"I don't think he had a gun on him, but he could have potentially hurt us or we could have hurt him,'' she said. "Even if it was a prank, it could have become very scary and dangerous quickly."
Vestavia Hills police Lt. Kevin York said they received another call about 11 p.m. about a teenager streaking through the neighborhood in the direction of Vestavia Hills Baptist, where he said kids are known to hang out. They were unable to locate the streaker as well.
Yancey said she just wants her neighbors and the community to be aware and safe, and hopes that the trespasser also is safe, if indeed he meant no harm. "I hope he never does it again because he could have been unlucky," she said. "Maybe we spooked him off enough not go to another house and not do it again."
Click link below for video: