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Utah man sentenced for putting cameras in LDS church bathrooms

Posted at 6:49 PM, Jan 30, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-30 20:49:54-05

SALT LAKE CITY – A Utah man has been sentenced to up to five years in prison for voyeurism, after he placed cameras in the women’s bathroom of an LDS Church to capture inappropriate footage of victims.

James Steven Larson, 40, pleaded guilty to three counts of voyeurism in December of 2017.

According to a probable cause statement released in Utah’s Third District Court, Larsen was arrested in February of 2017, in St. George. Larsen was wanted in Salt Lake County for allegedly placing hidden cameras in the restrooms of LDS churches early on Sunday mornings, and then retrieving them the next day.  He often secretly recorded underage girls. Larsen also recorded members of his family in a home.

When questioned by police, Larsen told them that he had multiple SD cards in his vehicle with recordings of both adults and children. Unified Police obtained a search warrant for Larsen’s car, where they recovered three SD cards, two cameras and keys. Larsen reportedly had access to three different LDS churches in the Magna area, court documents said.

Larsen told police that he had intended to capture images of his sister in law, and that she was his “target.”  Larsen also told police that he wanted to “just catch whomever,” and he was found with multiple images of different victims, both male and female, old and young.

Larsen was sent to the Utah State Prison to serve out his three consecutive sentences.