Police find child porn on phone of accused peeping Tom caught by Wichita dad

The man accused of being a peeping Tom after being found outside the bedroom window of a Wichita girl had child pornography on his phone when he was arrested, police said.

Mark Lawson, 62, was arrested Nov. 6 by Wichita police officers after a 15-year-old girl called 911 while her dad confronted Lawson outside. Investigators allege they later found sexually explicit photos and videos of a 10-year-old girl from New York who sent Lawson messages on social media after he posed as a 13-year-old boy.

The allegations are detailed in an affidavit written by a WPD detective and filed in Sedgwick County District Court, where Lawson faces numerous criminal charges. The affidavit was released on Tuesday. Prosecutors have charged him with 11 felony counts of sexual exploitation of a child, as well as criminal trespass and breach of privacy.

The last two charges, which are both misdemeanors, are the only ones directly connected to the peeping Tom allegations.

The incident happened in the 1900 block of South Custer when a 15-year-old girl in her bedroom heard leaves crunching outside her window, the detective wrote in the affidavit. Her dad had previously nailed a blanket over her window because of previous incidents. The teen told her parents about the sound, and her father went outside the house as she called 911.

The dad told police that he found Lawson in the backyard standing by his daughter’s window. Lawson said he was looking for his dog, which the dad said was “the same excuse Mark has given two other times.” The backyard is enclosed by a chain-link fence that has a “no trespassing” sign.

The confrontation ended with the dad wrestling the intruder to the ground and holding him until police arrived.

Officers arrested Lawson and took him in for questioning. He told police that he was looking in the window for “the thrill,” but denied doing it for sexual gratification. He said he has been peeping through windows of homes for years.

Lawson gave investigators permission to search his phone, the affidavit states, and directed the detective to where he could find sexually explicit images of minors on the Likee app.

Police found that less than a month before, Lawson had pretended to be a 13-year-old boy. He asked a girl who said she was 10 if she wanted to play truth or dare. Over the course of a week, at Lawson’s request, the girl sent several pictures and videos of sex acts.

Investigators later teamed up with police in New York and determined the victim was a 10-year-old girl living in the state.

Lawson remains held in the Sedgwick County Jail in lieu of a $100,000 bond.