SEQUIM — The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office is seeking information about a man who was seen taking photographs of children on the Olympic Discovery Trail near Railroad Bridge.
The man — described as being white, with a mullet hairstyle and wearing leggings — did not break any laws by taking the photographs, but deputies want to establish who he is and what his intentions are, said Brian King, chief criminal deputy for the Sheriff’s Office.
“It’s not illegal, but it’s not a social norm,” King said.
There is nothing that prohibits anyone from taking pictures of people in public places.
However, King said the man’s demeanor during the incident was “concerning behavior.”
The Sheriff’s Office received a report from a woman who said a man with a bicycle and a camera approached her on the trail Monday and asked to take pictures of her young child, which she declined.
She told deputies the man then took pictures of children from another family without notifying them of what he was doing, and the man contacted her again as she was putting her child into her car.
The woman said she informed the father of the children who were photographed about what she had observed.
He confronted the unidentified man and requested to see the pictures, and the man refused, she said.
King said that if anyone else is approached or sees someone taking pictures of their children, they should respond by taking pictures of him.
Photos of the man should be emailed to sheriff@co.clallam.wa.us.
Anyone with information or who sees a man fitting the description is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office at 360-417-2262.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at arice@peninsuladailynews.com.
