19-year-old Makarious Jevonne Bates (Source: Irving Police Department)
IRVING, Texas - Newly released court documents have revealed disturbing new details in the case of a 19-year-old man arrested for secretly filming women in public restrooms, including the discovery of nearly 300 illicit videos and photos on his phone.
Makarious Jevonne Bates was taken into custody following an investigation by the Irving Police Department into unlawful recordings spanning multiple shopping centers. He now faces multiple counts of invasive visual recording, a state-jail felony in Texas.
The TJ Maxx Incident
What we know:
The investigation began on June 3, 2026, when police responded to a TJ Maxx department store in the 7700 block of North MacArthur Boulevard.
Store employees reported that an unknown man had been filming a woman and a female child inside the store's restroom earlier that day.
Although the suspect initially fled, he returned to the store 40 minutes later wearing the same clothes and re-entered the women's restroom.
An employee exited the restroom visibly shaken and emotional. She told coworkers that while using the toilet, she looked down and saw a hand holding an active smartphone camera recording her from beneath the neighboring stall wall.
How Police Tracked the Suspect:
A store loss prevention officer told detectives that the same suspect was believed to have committed similar offenses at the TJ Maxx on April 12 and June 1. The officer provided police with the license plate of a Dodge Challenger the suspect used to flee the scene.
The vehicle was registered to Bates, and police confirmed his identity by comparing store surveillance footage with bodycam video from a prior traffic stop.
On June 15, license plate readers flagged Bates’ car traveling down MacArthur Boulevard. Officers located the vehicle near a Target and pulled him over. Bates was arrested on an unrelated offense, and his phone was seized after he voluntarily provided his passcode.
Hundreds of Files Found:
On June 22, detectives executed a search warrant on Bates’ phone, performing a full digital extraction.
Investigators discovered more than 290 images and videos of women walking through department stores, dressing rooms, and bathrooms.
Forensic examiners found a video recorded on June 15 in a women's restroom showing a female victim wearing a Walmart employee vest. The footage captured Bates holding his phone both above and below the restroom stall.
Metadata from the file placed the recording at a Walmart store located at 9311 Forest Lane in Dallas. Detectives tracked down the employee, who was unaware she had been filmed. She was highly emotional upon learning of the recording and chose to pursue criminal charges.
Police Seek Additional Victims:
Because the data suggests Bates' unlawful recordings began as early as April 2026 across shopping centers on North MacArthur Boulevard, Irving detectives believe there may be more unidentified victims.
What you can do:
The Irving Police Department is urging anyone who believes they may have encountered Bates or had their privacy compromised to contact Detective S. Herring at 972-721-2604 or via email at SHerring@IrvingTX.gov. Anonymous tips can also be submitted to IPDCrimeTips@IrvingTX.gov.
The Source: Information in this article is from the Irving Police Department and the arrest affidavit for Makarious Jevonne Bates.