Teacher used shoe cam for years, court records say

A Roosevelt High School teacher resigned Friday after he was arrested for taking photographs up women's skirts at a Sioux Falls grocery store.

Dallas Rulon Wilkinson, 35, was arrested at the HyVee on South Minnesota Avenue after an employee reported suspicious behavior to police.

He faces four counts of taking pictures without consent, a misdemeanor.

Affidavit in support of arrest warrant: STORY CONTINUES BELOW

Wilkinson was a social studies teacher and boys soccer coach at Roosevelt since 2009. Sioux Falls superintendent Brian Maher said he submitted his resignation after his arrest Friday afternoon.

The investigation began June 25 at the Hy-Vee at 3010 S. Minnesota Ave. after an employee reported suspicious activity, police said.

The employee told police he saw a man in the store with a camera inside his shoe. The man was seen standing close to women and sticking his foot out to photograph between the victims' legs, Clemens said.

On June 30, the employee called police again to report that the same person was in the store and also was able to give police a license plate number.

VIDEOS: Superintendent Maher held a news conference Monday afternoon. Watch it here, and watch police briefing detailing the investigation at the end of this story.

A HyVee employee told police June 25 that he saw a man in the store with a camera inside his shoe. The man was seen standing close to women who were wearing skirts or dresses and sticking his foot out to photograph between the victims' legs, according to police spokesman Sam Clemens.

The shoe cameras are capable of taking photos and video recordings that can be then downloaded onto other media devices, according to court documents.

On June 30, the employee called police again to report the same person in the store and was able police a license plate number.

A HyVee manager found four surveillance videos showing the suspect taking pictures of women with the shoe camera, Clemens said. Court documents say the surveillance video showed a man walking up behind women in line at the Starbucks kiosk in the store and sticking his foot underneath them.

On July 8, the man was seen in the HyVee parking lot and police were able to confirm Wilkinson as the suspect, Clemens said. Wilkinson was arrested that same day.

"If it wasn't for the ... great observation skills, really just being observant in seeing something out of the ordinary, we really wouldn't have had any idea this was taking place," Clemens said. "So I think all of the credit goes to the HyVee employee who noticed and really kicked everything off for us."

A spokesperson for HyVee said the store does not comment on incidents related to police investigations.

Twice a week for two years

Police acquired a search warrant and seized Wilkinson's electronics, computer and the camera that was used, Clemens said.

According to court documents, Wilkinson told police that he knew what he was doing was wrong.

Wilkinson said in the affidavit that he had been taking photos and videos in this manner an average of twice a week for approximately two years. He also told police he usually does this in retail stores and has also done this at the Farmer's Market.

"We've got these four instances (at HyVee) that we know ... we believe it's probably been happening for some time, but what that exact timeline is we don't know," Clemens said.

Police recovered two videos with footage of under a woman's skirt or dress on the camera found in the police search. They also recovered a number of deleted files of still photos of women's upskirts, according to court documents.

"One of the things we have not found, we don't believe any students have been reported," Clemens said. "No juveniles have been reported (in pictures)."

Communications specialist for the school district Ben Schumacher said it is concerning that Wilkinson's behavior possibly went unnoticed for two years. He said this incident is a "teaching moment" for students and staff to be conscious of any suspicious behavior.Police do not think the photos have been posted online.

"Sometimes an investigation like this can make you think back on a conversation or an instance where something in the heat of the moment felt wrong or different, and then maybe you forgot about that," Schumacher said.

'I don't know how this could have been prevented.'

In a Monday afternoon press conference, Maher said he did not know what the district could have done to predict that Wilkinson, or any other teacher without a criminal record, would be involved in criminal activity.

"I'm not looking to make excuses for the school system, but I don't know how this could have been predicted," Maher said.

The school district's employee code of conduct does not specifically reference criminal activity, but Schumacher summarized the expectation that employees will be representatives of the district in the community.

"There's a high accountability we hold for our employees in how they represent themselves and their employer in the community," Schumacher said.

While in this specific instance, Wilkinson filed his resignation before being asked to do so, Maher said in general, misdemeanors related to a violation of privacy are behaviors that would not be tolerated.

"Would it cost them their job? Most likely," Maher said.

Complaint filed against Dallas Wilkinson: STORY CONTINUES BELOW

This is not the first time a school district employee has been involved in criminal activity off the clock.

In December, Tonya Drueppel, a former employee was charged with raping a 14-year-old student who she met while teaching at Axtell Park Middle School.

In 2010, a former Patrick Henry Middle School teacher was arrested for romantic relationships with two 13-year-old girls.

Despite these arrests, Schumacher said the district has a good reporting process in place.

"We have very open-door policies," he said. "We like to make relationships so that students and other staff members feel open and comfortable if they know of anything or hear of anything."

Wilkinson posted bail Friday. His next court appearance has not been released by the Sioux Falls clerk of courts office.

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