Man accused of stalking woman with GPS takes deal

A 38-year-old Port Washington man accused of tracking a woman by hiding a GPS device on her car and a camera in her home averted a trial this week by accepting a plea deal.

Brian S. Harris pleaded no contest in Ozaukee County Circuit Court Tuesday to one felony count of stalking and a misdemeanor charge of placing a GPS device without consent.

Judge Steve Cain withheld a prison sentence and placed Harris on probation for four years.

Ironically, the investigation that led to the charges was initiated by Harris in August 2021 when he reported to police that someone hacked his bank and social media accounts and that person was likely a female friend of his, according to the criminal complaint.

But when police interviewed the woman identified by Harris, she said her accounts had been hacked and both she and her boyfriend were concerned that Harris was tracking their movements.

The woman said she has known Harris since she was a teenager but they never dated. She said he lived with her from December 2020 through January 2021.

An officer who searched the woman’s vehicle found a LandAirSea 54 GPS tracking device attached to the front of the vehicle. The woman said she was unaware the GPS was on her car and told authorities Harris had apparently linked her social media accounts to his phone number.

At the onset of the investigation, an officer investigating Harris’ claim that his accounts had been hacked noticed he purchased a LandAirSea GPS unit. When asked about it, Harris said he used the GPS in his vehicle, the complaint states.

Authorities subpoenaed records associated with data from the GPS unit and determined that it had been placed on the woman’s car on Aug. 3, 2021, while she was at work in Cedarburg, then tracked her movements over the course of the next month.

The woman also reported that she had found a camera — the same make and model as one Harris had given her — hidden under a table in her home, the complaint states.

On Dec. 22, the woman gave police images from a camera that monitors her driveway that showed Harris’ vehicle parked in her driveway and him by the windows of her home.

On Jan. 9, the woman called authorities to report that Harris was at her home and refused to leave. A sheriff’s deputy told him to leave and not return.

A week later, a detective went to the woman’s home, but when he knocked on the door she told him to go away. Eventually, the woman came to the door and appeared agitated. She said Harris had been at her home and she thought he had returned when the detective knocked on her door.

The woman told the detective she felt like she was losing control of her life because Harris was stalking her, the complaint states.

As conditions of Harris’ probation, Cain ordered him not to have contact with the woman, her home or her social media accounts. He also ordered him to participate in any mental health evaluations and treatments deemed necessary by his probation agent.

Harris can petition the court for early termination of his probation if his agent determines his treatment needs have been met.