‘A man exposed himself to me on a video call – the police did not investigate properly’

In October, business coach Rebecca Amin opened her laptop to join a video call while her children played in the next room. When her male client turned on his camera Rebecca was shocked to see that he was standing naked from the waist down.

“It was disgusting,” she says, “I felt humiliated.”

Rebecca decided to report the crime to the local police, believing that what had happened on screen at her home in Surrey was no less serious than if it had happened in person.

But she was disappointed with the police response. It turned out that the man – who had contacted Rebecca to request career coaching – was calling from India, and the police told her they would keep details of the incident on file, but there was nothing they could do. .

Rebecca is one of a number of victims of obscene calls and indecent exposure by strangers who have told BBC News that police failed to investigate properly and were dismissive of their experiences.

The women contacted the BBC Following a report highlighting the failures of the two forces When dealing with reports of malicious, lewd phone calls.

Some victims of “non-contact sexual crimes” – crimes that do not involve physical contact between the perpetrator and the victim – say they have been left feeling violated, like Rebecca.

Security Minister Jess Phillips told the BBC it was “unbearable” that police and prosecutors were not taking these crimes seriously.

Police chiefs say not all victims get fair results when their cases are investigated and admit some forces have fallen short.

Rebecca posted on the social media platform LinkedIn about what happened to her and was surprised when five women, who were also business coaches, reached out to say they had done the same to a man using the same profile. Had experienced the same.

She also contacted the platform that hosted her video call. They told him they could provide an IP address for that person that would identify his device and provide information about his geolocation, if the police asked for that information.

But despite providing police with the names and contact details of other victims and contacts on the video-hosting platform, Rebecca never contacted them again.

“It felt like they had washed their hands of it,” says Rebecca. “It made me feel like it wasn’t something they could be bothered to follow, or it wasn’t important enough.”

But he feared that this crime could be a prelude to something more serious.

“I told the police, ‘My concern is not just what he’s doing to me and other women through the screen, but what he’s doing locally – when it’s not enough for him anymore – With someone who has physical access to him.

Surrey Police only contacted Rebecca again after BBC News contacted her for comment.

In a statement, the force said it had provided an apology and update to Rebecca, but said the delay in investigating her case was “much shorter” than it had expected.

“Our goal is to approach every investigation with care and service,” he said, “and we fully acknowledge that we did not do that in this case.”

Surrey Police say Rebecca’s case is now being investigated further.

In 2020, 83-year-old Barbara Marsden told her daughter Sally that a worker who visited her home in Lancashire had abused her.

Sally says her mother described how the man allegedly showed her his penis.

The CCTV installed outside Barbara’s house shows the artisan unzipping the pants and then opening its zip.

Sally, who is a lawyer, reported the incident to the police, but the officer assigned to the case was helpful and proactive, but she believes the system let her mother down.

“It was very disappointing,” says Sally. “It felt like I was running the case.”

By the time police decided to do a video interview with her mother – four months later – Barbara, who has dementia, was unable to recall the details of what had happened.

Sally says she also had to do research to find the suspect’s whereabouts and explain to prosecutors why they should not drop the case.

The case took more than three years to come to trial, causing Sally to worry that the man’s crimes might increase.

“He targeted a vulnerable elderly man in his own home… was he going to do something worse?

“I don’t think there’s any recognition of the fact that people who shine are actually more likely to do more serious things,” says Sally. “The police do not look at the risk posed by the criminal.”

Lancashire Police told the BBC in a statement that they had received a report of an indecent display in 2020 and launched an investigation. One person was arrested and charged, he said, but was later acquitted after a trial.

He said the review found that the service provided was acceptable.

A man accused of indecently exposing himself to Sally’s elderly mother was later convicted in a separate case of making indecent images of a child.

Lara Burns was on vacation in Spain with her family in October 2021 when she received an anonymous phone call. The man on the other end of the line called Lara by name and then made obscene sexual noises and comments.

This was not the first time he had received such a call. A similar call had come a few months ago also. She had rejected it then – but this time she couldn’t.

“I definitely found the same person,” says Lara. “He was there in the middle of the day – making disgusting noises and talking about disgusting things.”

Lara, who is from Stevenage and has a teenage daughter, says she felt threatened and feared the man might have her address, so she reported the call to Hertfordshire Police.

“I started thinking, ‘Is this someone I might know from work? Is this someone who just found me online?'”

Lara was interviewed by a police constable, had a more detailed interview with another officer, and was then referred to victim assistance.

“I remember feeling quite humiliated,” says Lara.

She no longer felt safe going out at night and was sent a rape alarm by Victim Support.

But she says she never heard anything more from Hertfordshire Police.

Lara says the incident had a lasting adverse impact on her and believes the police could have done more to investigate.

Hertfordshire Police told the BBC that they were unable to trace the source of the call and that they tried to contact Lara several times without success, before writing to Lara to tell them they were “further investigating”. Will not be able to increase”.

The force said it had “followed all proportionate lines of investigation for crimes of this nature”.

If you have been affected by the issues in this story, help and support is available bbc action line,

Jess Phillips says she’s sorry some victims are having bad experiences.

“Suggesting that non-contact sexual offenses are not serious is intolerable,” she says. She acknowledges that police resources are an issue, and adds: “Violence against women and girls is a strategic policing priority – it is not an optional extra.”

The National Police Chiefs Council says it is working to improve the way these types of crimes are investigated and prosecuted.

“We know there are cases where the police response has been inadequate and the outcomes for victims have not been good enough.”