Wesley Dingus, the mayor of the Butler community in the US state of Ohio, was arrested after a hidden camera caught him smelling the underwear of a teenage girl who lived temporarily in his house. The charges, detailed in a Richland County Sheriff's Office report, were made after the young woman installed the recording device in her bedroom, The Guardian reports.
According to investigators, the teenager, a minor, set up a small camera in her bedroom after she began to suspect that the mayor, aged 48, was going through her things.
On Jan. 13, the girl received several motion alerts, and the recordings allegedly showed Dingus sniffing at least four pairs of underwear for several seconds and touching her groin area over the clothes.
Richland County Child Protective Services forwarded the report to authorities, and a day later, a sheriff's deputy interviewed the victim at the school.
Accused of voyeurism
After the mayor's lawyer canceled a scheduled meeting with investigators, authorities arrested him nearly a month later on February 13.
Wesley Dingus appeared in court on February 19, where he pleaded not guilty. The judge set bail at $10,000 – of which Dedilul posted 10 percent – and ordered GPS monitoring as well as a restraining order to contact the victim.
Prosecutors have issued two summonses on charges of voyeurism.
Wesley Dingus caught on surveillance camera. PHOTO video capture Fb Ashland County Pictures
A mandate marked by controversies
A member of the Republican Party, Wesley Dingus became mayor in 2022 after the resignation of his predecessor, and was later elected to a full term with 199 votes in a town of less than 1,000 residents.
It is not the first time that the mayor faces legal problems. In August 2025, he was indicted on four counts after allegedly hitting a suspect who was trying to flee police. The victim survived the incident. Dingus pleaded not guilty in that case as well.
