Backpacker’s disturbing find in his room after landing 'too good to be true' farm job
A man seeking backpackers to work for his Queensland company has been charged by police after one prospective employee claims to have found hidden cameras in his room.
Maron de Rooij, 26, from the Netherlands, visited Conrad Cosgrove’s property in the scenic Glass House Mountains, 40km southwest of the Sunshine Coast, on May 28 after responding to a job advertisement for work at his Animal Ark Transport business.
Mr Rooij said the job, which offered free food and accommodation, appeared “really promising” and “almost too good to be true”, however, when checking his room he claims to have found several hidden cameras inside his room as well as the shower.
He uploaded video of the room to Facebook, with comments saying there were cameras inside a smoke detector, a digital clock and behind several holes in decorative corrugated iron.
The backpacker, who says he has experience in camera surveillance and IT, contacted police but was forced to spend a night at the room before they arrived the following day.
“The only thing I could do was stick in there and wait it out until the cops came,” he told Nine News.
Police attended the property on May 29, with Mr Rooij sharing photos of officers searching the room. They later obtained a computer from Mr Cosgrove.
Queensland Police confirmed to Yahoo News Australia a 44-year-old man from Glass House Mountains has been charged with recording in breach of privacy and possession of tainted property.
“A 26-year-old man notified police after locating a number of recording devices within a bedroom and bathroom on May 28,” a police spokesperson said.
In an online statement, Mr Cosgrove denied claims there were cameras inside the room, instead saying there were only security cameras outside of the accommodation.
“The Ark Site has a CCTV System located in the outdoor common area that records 24/7 and consists of 2 cameras. This monitors the entrance and exit to the Ark Site,” he said.
“This system whilst not hidden, isn’t clearly visible enough due to its location seven metres above the ground. There is a lack of signage and there was a lack of disclosure for this system.
“I personally was charged with a “breach of privacy” as I am the owner of the equipment which is now rendered inoperative until signage and clear disclosure of the system is established.”
He went on to say Mr Rooij’s video “shows nothing more than corrugated tin which has hundreds of holes in it for decorative effect, low voltage USB cabling used to power a smoke detector on the roof, and a roof mounted stand alone alarm system that protects the building when it’s vacant.”
Mr Cosgrove is due to appear at the Maroochydore Magistrates Court on June 20.
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