DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — Residents in a DeKalb County neighborhood are speaking out over safety concerns following recent incidents with a "Peeping Tom."
Anne Adams, who lives in the Sargent Hills area, is among those reporting such encounters to police.
"I was for a month, scared to come into my backyard even in the daytime," Adams said.
The insecurity started late May when Adams first noticed the shadow of a man in her backyard as she was getting ready for bed.
"I was walking to my bedroom when I glanced out these French doors, and I saw him right outside this deck area," Adams said, adding that the man was touching himself inappropriately. The individual ran away as she yelled she was calling police, she shared.
"Police did a drive-by," she continued, "Of course, he was long gone by then."
Only after DeKalb Police left did Adams' boyfriend remind her of the newly-installed security camera. The pair reviewed the videos, which showed the individual in her backyard four times that very week.
"He could have been coming here for months," she said.
She's turned over the video to investigators and filed a police report. DeKalb Police confirm to 11Alive that they are investigating the incident, as well as a separate report from June 15.
"On June 15, around 10:30 p.m. the suspect was captured on surveillance cameras looking through windows and on patios near the 1000 block of Greenbriar Circle as well," a statement reads. "The male is described as tall with a slim build, a beard and a short afro. Anyone with information is urged to call our Special Victims Unit at 770-724-7710."
The Valley Brook Civic Association, which includes Sargent Hills in part, also confirmed to 11Alive that they've reached out to police to set up a community meeting over the ongoing concerns.
"We definitely want this person caught," a spokesperson for the group shared.
That motivation is also the reason Adams, too, is speaking up.
"Other neighbors have seen him," she said. "I want this guy caught. He needs to be caught."
As a reminder, DeKalb Police offer this advice: "Remember, to keep your doors and windows locked and if you see something, say something."