Chirping fire alarm leads to discovery of hidden bathroom cam, arrest
NASH, Texas–A chirping smoke detector led to the discovery of a hidden camera in a home’s bathroom police say was installed in January 2025 by a man who was installing a security system as part of a home remodel.
Bennie Lee Franklin, 46, has been charged with invasive visual recording in connection with the camera, which was designed to look like a residential smoke detector. He is currently free on bond.
Franklin owned Tusks-N-Horns Bar & Grill in Texarkana, which he and Erin Franklin opened at the Wyndham hotel on North State Line Avenue in November 2017, TXKtoday reported at the time. The restaurant later moved to St. Michael Drive. State tax records show the business last reported liquor sales in March 2019, and its Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission permit expired that October without being renewed.
In April, a family at a residence in Nash was trying to determine which of their smoke detectors was signaling a low battery when they discovered a device on the ceiling of a bathroom that didn’t look like the others, according to a probable cause affidavit filed Wednesday in Bowie County.
The homeowner confirmed that no hidden camera was authorized as part of the security system installation.
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The camera was positioned on the ceiling of the bathroom, just inside the door. It held an SD storage card, and its power cable ran into the ceiling, where an officer traced it to an outlet in the attic that had been installed to power the home’s legitimate security camera system, according to the affidavit.
Nash police consulted with the local FBI field office, and the device was submitted to an FBI lab in hopes of recovering data from the SD card.
In September, Nash police received the evidence back from the FBI. The SD card contained 7,159 one-minute videos, the affidavit said. The dates of the recordings spanned from Jan. 14, 2025, to July 27, 2025.
“The first three videos show the suspect installing the device in the bathroom and it is clear it is positioned in such a way as to best see the shower, which has a floor length clear glass door,” the affidavit said. “The storage device further contained hundreds of videos of the victim going about her day to day bathroom related activities.”
After viewing one of the videos, the homeowner identified Franklin as the man installing the device, describing him as “a man whom she has known for several years,” police said.
Investigators further determined that the camera device is advertised as linking to a cell phone application for remote viewing.
Franklin faces six months to two years in a state jail if convicted.
The case has been assigned to 202nd District Judge John Tidwell.
An attorney of record was not listed Wednesday for Franklin.