A Boston man was arrested last week after allegedly recording unsuspecting family and friends in various private locations at his family’s home in Maine.

Samuel Mickey, 26, was arrested in Boston for violation of privacy and charged as a fugitive from justice since the charges were filed in Maine. He lives in Boston but was visiting family in Eliot, Maine, at the time of the alleged incident.

Samuel Mickey, 26, was arrested on July 25. —Eliot Police Department

The houseguests, who were longtime friends of Mickey’s family, noticed something strange when they went to visit their friends, a release from the Eliot Police Department said. “Suspicious phone style chargers” were placed in several bathrooms and a bedroom where two teenagers were staying.


Eliot Police chief Elliott Moya said the cameras looked like old-school phone chargers and are believed to be motion activated and record in approximately 3-minute increments.

One of the teens found micro SD cards in the faux chargers, which were actually video cameras, according to the release. The teen turned the SD cards over to police.

Upon review of the cards’ contents, officers found the cameras were faced toward toilets, showers, and bedroom areas.

“This is creepy,” Moya said. “No doubt.”

Mickey reportedly had at least four hidden cameras, including one that looked like a phone charger, one that looked like a hard drive, and one that looked like an outlet extension. It’s unclear whether all were used to record footage.

Officers also found hard drive cameras. —Eliot Police Department

“The technology is just getting far superior,” Moya said. “This isn’t really uncommon.”

A Google search for “spy camera phone charger” finds numerous options for as little as $15. Moya said the sneaky devices are not hard to get your hands on, and families should be on the lookout for them when staying in new places.

He said the teens who noticed something was wrong felt the chargers looked strange and were in odd places in the house.


Police also searched Mickey’s Boston home and found more evidence, Moya said. He declined to elaborate on what the evidence might be.

Mickey was arrested in Boston but will be tried in York County, Maine.

Moya said he’s hopeful this was “one stupid, isolated mistake,” but anyone with information about Mickey or the case is encouraged to contact Sgt. Ronald Lund at 207-439-1179.