Man Accused of Deleting Photos of Young Girl at Bozeman Walmart
The following information is from an arrest report courtesy of the Bozeman Police Department.
On Tuesday, August 20, Bozeman police responded to Walmart due to a report of a suspicious person.
Dispatch advised that a male was inside of Walmart and he was reportedly taking pictures of a young girl.
When police arrived at the scene, a Walmart employee pointed out a vehicle that was leaving the parking lot with the suspect inside.
An officer initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle, making contact with the 52-year-old driver, Mark Duane Booth of Livingston.
The officer informed Booth that he was being stopped due to a report that he was taking photos of a young girl at Walmart.
Booth gave the officer consent to search his phone. Pictures found on the phone verified that he had been taking images of young girls in the store.
According to the police report, after capturing the photos the officer returned the phone to Booth who said "I'm not a predator" or "a creepo." Booth said that he "just always has his phone out and is hitting the button that takes pictures."
The officer walked to his patrol car to review the pictures and then returned to Booth's vehicle to talk with him. It was at this point that the officer noticed that Booth had apparently deleted pictures from inside the Walmart from his phone.
Booth was then placed under arrest for Felony Tampering with/or Fabricating Physical Evidence.
Booth appeared in Gallatin County Justice Court, Wednesday, and bail was set at $2,500.