RICHMOND, Va. -- A Richmond woman is raising awareness about a series of "startling" incidents outside her Museum District apartment in an effort to help protect neighbors and raise questions about the response from police.
For Grace Hall, it all started on November 20 when, from the comfort of her living room, she began feeling quite uncomfortable.
“I was sitting right here watching TV when I heard this (tap, tap, tap) on the window," Hall said.
She tried to write off the weird sound as something non-nefarious like a branch brushing up against the window but still felt like she needed to be on "high alert."
Fast forward more than a week later, and Hall said a neighbor she'd never met before knocked on her door to deliver some concerning news.
“She told me that she had footage of a man coming around looking into my building with his pants down," Hall said. "I had this feeling, and I hadn't been sleeping well, like my whole body had been off."
Behind her apartment building on Hanover Avenue, an unknown man was caught on camera lurking in the alleys, peeking through windows, and exposing himself.
The incidents were documented on at least three separate occasions ever since Thanksgiving day when one resident installed a security camera due to suspicious activity. Hall said a group of neighbors then got together, exchanged numbers, and shared similar stories of how they've been affected by the stranger's actions.
"It's not a great feeling to be a young woman in this area when this is going on," Hall said.
On Thursday, December 1, Hall said she escalated her concerns by filing a report with the Richmond Police Department. The very next night, on December 2, Hall said she saw the man outside again through the camera in real-time.
She said she immediately called 911 around 9:50 p.m. to alert a dispatcher.
"I told them, 'There's somebody that I've seen on camera outside of my building. I don't think he's there any longer, but I want someone to come out and check,'" Hall said.
No one showed up, Hall said. So, she said she called again about an hour later at 11 p.m., and still, officers did not respond.
A spokesperson for Richmond Emergency Communications confirmed that Hall called twice that night to report suspicious activity. Another call was made earlier in the day to report a lewd incident that occurred two days prior.
"I want [police] to patrol our area a little bit better. I think the biggest thing though, is I want to know that if I call 911, someone will come out and take a look at what's going on," Hall said.
Now, Hall is sharing these stories on TikTok, Reddit, Facebook, news outlets, and beyond to make sure the surrounding community is informed.
“Stay alert, stay on guard, and look out for each other. Go ahead and knock on your neighbor's door. Get to know them, exchange numbers, because you never know when you might need to reach out to them," Hall said.
A silver lining, she pointed out, is that she forged new friendships with neighbors who have all been brought together through the situation.
Richmond Police told CBS 6 the case has now been assigned to Major Crimes and is being fully investigated. Police have not yet provided further information pertaining to the investigation or a possible suspect.
CBS 6 reached out to 1st District Councilman Andreas Addison who represents the Museum District. He said he contacted the police and was told officers are marking out at the location and physically checking the area.
December 14 UPDATE:
CBS 6 asked RPD about Hall’s concerns about officers not showing up for her calls for service. RPD Spokesperson Tracy Walker responded to the inquiry December 13 with the following information:
“At approximately 11:46 a.m., Friday, December 2, the complainant reported an incident of indecent exposure that had occurred two days earlier. A Police report was created at that time.
That evening at approximately 9:55 p.m., the complainant called police to report an incident of indecent exposure by a suspicious person occurring at the same location. An officer was dispatched by DEC at 10:03 p.m., and arrived within one minute. No suspicious person was located at the scene by the officer and an attempt to speak with the complainant was made however, the complainant did not wish to be seen.
At approximately 11:43 p.m., an officer was again dispatched to that location for a call for service by the complainant to report a suspicious person. An RPD officer arrived nine minutes later and did not locate a suspect. The officer attempted to make contact with the complainant by knocking on a door to the dwelling and did not receive an answer. The officer requested DEC contact the complainant to ask to meet the officer at the scene. DEC then made two attempts to reach the complainant with no answer. The officer remained at the scene for approximately 20 minutes but did not locate the suspicious person nor did the complainant make contact with the officer at the scene.
RPD has increased patrols in this area as a result of this investigation.
RPD has also issued the previously disseminated release which contains additional descriptive information.
RPD has been talking with the neighborhood association and asks for the public’s assistance by providing any additional information or video to please call Crime Stoppers at 804-780-1000.”
This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
