Target Security Spots Man Accused of Recording Teen Girls

By Taylor Bennett. Sep 21, 2026

Store Security Saw What the Girls Did Not

Three teenage girls were walking through a Charlotte Target while one of their mothers waited nearby when store security noticed a man repeatedly following them, according to police and local reporting. The girls did not realize they were being recorded, but surveillance cameras captured the behavior investigators later described in court papers.

Adem Shrader, 31, was arrested Sept. 13 and charged with felony secret peeping and three misdemeanor counts of indecent liberties with a child. The charges remain allegations, and the case has not resulted in a conviction.

The incident happened at the Target in Blakeney Town Center in south Charlotte, a familiar daytime setting where the teenagers had gone to shop together.

Cameras Tracked His Movements Through the Store

According to an affidavit described by WBTV, surveillance video showed Shrader approach a 17-year-old near the end of an aisle, crouch behind her and place a phone beneath her skirt without her knowledge.

Police said the video then showed him following three 15-year-old girls into the clothing section. Investigators allege he used a clothing rack as cover while aiming his phone toward the girls.

The mother of one of the teens later told WCCB that she had remained in the same shopping center while the girls walked through Target. She said the incident was frightening precisely because it happened in an ordinary store during the day.

The girls’ identities have not been publicly released, and they should remain private.

Loss Prevention Staff Alerted Police

Target loss-prevention staff reported the behavior to police. Court records cited by local outlets say Shrader followed the girls toward checkout while pushing an otherwise empty cart containing a bottle of orange soda.

That small detail became part of the surveillance timeline officers used to track his movement through the store.

Police arrested Shrader before he left. He was being held in Mecklenburg County jail on a $100,000 bond, according to WCCB.

Records cited by WCCB also indicate Shrader previously faced peeping-related charges in South Carolina. The current North Carolina charges must be decided separately on their own evidence.

A Routine Shopping Trip Became a Police Case

The case did not begin with one of the teenagers noticing the alleged recording. It began because employees watching the store’s security system recognized behavior they believed required intervention.

That distinction gives the story its strongest human detail: the girls were moving through a familiar public place while someone else noticed the threat before they did.

Their families now face a criminal case built partly on the same security cameras that first brought the alleged conduct to employees’ attention.

The Case Now Moves to Court

Shrader faces multiple charges involving minors and alleged secret recording. Prosecutors will have to prove those allegations in court.

For the teens and their parents, the legal process follows an afternoon that began as an ordinary trip to Target and ended with police, surveillance video and an arrest.

One Parent Says the Setting Made the Allegation Harder to Process

Michelle Lopez, whose daughter was among the teenagers, told WCCB that she had stayed nearby rather than leaving the girls alone for an extended period. She said the allegation was difficult to absorb because it happened in a busy store in daylight while she was close enough to believe the girls were safe.

Local reporting also said Shrader had a prior peeping-related case in South Carolina. That history may become relevant to future court proceedings, but it does not substitute for proof of the new North Carolina charges.

The current case will depend on the surveillance footage, employee observations and other admissible evidence from the Charlotte store.

References: WBTV - Man Accused of Recording Teen Girls at Target | WCCB Charlotte - Parent of Secret Peeping Victim Speaks Out