'Very Disturbing': Peeping Tom Puts South Minneapolis Neighborhood On Edge

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- As people walked near the intersection of 25th Street and Dupont Avenue South in Minneapolis, some couldn't help but notice a concerning set of signs taped on several light posts.

"Very disturbing. Automatically you fear for your safety and the safety of your neighbors," said neighbor Veronica Starzinski. "[You] wonder like who's looking at you and who's been watching you."

The signs are a detailed warning about a "Peeping Tom" who in late August came face to face with Ana Poole, separated only by her bedroom window. She said she first heard the leaves rustling outside her house, then saw him peering through window, watching her in bed.

"At this point I'm like really scared, I'm just lying there like, 'Oh my God,' you know, 'What am I supposed to do in this situation?'" Poole said.

After collecting herself, she turned her fear into action.

"I just got out of my bed, banged on the window, yelled at him a little bit and then he ran away," she said.

Poole said she later found a bench outside her window which she thinks the man was standing on. The story sounds similar to what several women experienced a few blocks away on the 2400 block of Harriet Avenue in October of 2018. It prompted some of the victims to install security cameras in their bedroom windows, as well as flood lights.

Poole added motion sensor lights around her home, as well as window locks and covers.

"Like a translucent window film to try to decrease visibility," she said.

Thanks to her signs, neighbors are also putting their safety first.

"I always carry pepper spray at night, but I've definitely been looking around behind me more and been more observant of who I see, and, you know, based on the description posted, and more aware of like who's around," Starzinski said.

Poole described the man as white or light skinned with a bald head and glasses. She said neighbors have also messaged her seeing a similar man potentially walking around homes. Poole reported the incident to police, who tell WCCO patrols have been increased in the area with marked and unmarked vehicles.