A Pennsylvania man placed a listening device under the bed of his estranged wife to monitor when she was having sex with male friends.
Wayne Cripe, 66, is separated from his wife Suzanne, 49, but the pair resides in the same home, according to court records. The Cripes are “living in separate bedrooms,” reported Officer David Anderson.
Two weeks ago, Suzanne called cops when she discovered a transmitting microphone under her bed. She told officers that she suspected her husband Wayne had placed it there.
When an officer approached him, Wayne stated, “I guess she found the transmitter.” He said this, an investigator noted, before being asked any questions. In a subsequent interview, Cripe admitted placing the device under his wife’s bed “so he would know if his wife and her male friends were having sex.”
Cripe further explained that he was “sick of hearing her having sex,” and that the listening device allowed him to know if the “coast was clear” before he entered the house they still shared.
According to Wayne Cripe, the listening device transmitted to a receiver he kept in his truck. But he claimed to have discarded the receiver days earlier because it was no longer working, adding that he didn’t have the opportunity to remove the transmitting microphone before it was found.
As a result of the surreptitious bugging, Wayne Cripe was arrested and charged with illegally intercepting communications, a felony, and invasion of privacy, a misdemeanor.
Because both spouses co-own the home, Suzanne Cripe cannot have Wayne thrown out, and since there were no reports of violent behavior, a restraining order prohibiting Wayne from entering the home cannot be issued.
The Cripes continues to share the home.
A preliminary hearing on the charges is scheduled for March 23rd.
