Bannister
A Seymour man faces charges of child exploitation and voyeurism, police report.
Anthony Duane Bannister, 33, was arrested at 10:53 p.m. Sunday and booked into the Jackson County Jail in Brownstown.
He originally was arrested for child solicitation, but once the case was filed in Jackson Circuit Court, it was changed to child exploitation, a Level 5 felony, according to the probable cause affidavit.
On Sunday, Seymour Police Department Officer Anthony Desender responded to a home in the 300 block of Parkland Avenue in Seymour in reference to a report of verbal disorderly conduct. A woman told dispatch she was wanting to batter her boyfriend, later identified as Bannister.
While en route to the residence, Desender said he was told Bannister left the home in a red SUV. Upon arrival, Desender made contact with the woman, who told him she got into a really bad argument due to Bannister taking an upskirt video of her underage daughter on his cellphone, according to the probable cause affidavit.
The woman told police she saw the video on Bannister’s phone, confronted him about it and recorded the video with her phone. During the argument, Bannister grabbed one of his firearms, held it up to his head and told the woman to kill him, according to court records.
Bannister then left the home, and the woman gave police a description of the vehicle and a possible place he was headed. Desender shared that information with other local officers.
While talking to the woman, Desender learned Jackson County Sheriff’s Department and Brownstown Police Department officers conducted a traffic stop on Bannister’s vehicle and temporarily detained him.
When Desender arrived on the scene, he said he asked Bannister to give him details of the video he took on his cellphone, and Bannister said he was the one who recorded it, according to the probable cause affidavit. Desender said he asked Bannister about holding the gun up to his head during the argument with the woman, and he said he didn’t have thoughts of harming himself.
Desender then asked Bannister if the video of the girl was on his phone, and Bannister said he deleted it and didn’t know if it was still on the device. Bannister then allowed Desender to look on his phone, and Desender was able to locate the video.
Desender secured the phone for evidence and further investigation and transported Bannister to the jail, where he remains without bond.
