Digital forensic expert testifies at voyeurism trial of Halifax-area school teacher

A police digital forensic expert testified Wednesday that he was unable to find any voyeuristic images on the cellphone of a Halifax-area school teacher accused of spying on women in a public washroom last summer.

Matthew Douglas Moriarty, 43, is charged with five counts of voyeurism. Four women have accused him of secretly recording images of them when they were using a washroom at the Abenaki Aquatic Club in Dartmouth, N.S., on July 18-20, 2023.

Halifax Regional Police Special Const. Rodney Smith began testifying late Wednesday afternoon at Moriarty's trial in Dartmouth provincial court. He is the first — and so far only — witness qualified as an expert to give opinion evidence.

Smith testified that he was given Moriarty's cellphone two days after the man was arrested on July 20, 2023, at the paddling club.

He said a warrant instructed him to extract material from the phone using a specially-designed software program and he copied the contents of the phone to examine it.

He said that examination failed to uncover any videos or photographs that were voyeuristic in nature.

Case recap

Several people have testified since the trial began Monday that they saw a cellphone on the washroom floor in the clubhouse at Abenaki. They said the phone was inside the mesh pocket of a pair of men's shorts.

One man who was following Moriarty after allegations about his behaviour surfaced said he witnessed Moriarty using his foot to nudge the shorts and camera partway into an adjoining stall.

Officials with the aquatic club said they became concerned when a young woman reported she had seen a cellphone on the floor under the partition between the two stalls, with its camera lens pointed up toward her.

Testimony earlier in the week revealed members of the club executive discussed what to do while they debated whether to call police. When they encountered another woman who reported similar experiences in the washroom, they contacted the police non-emergency line.

Officers arrived mid-afternoon on July 20, 2023, and arrested Moriarty. A language teacher at Woodlawn High School in Dartmouth, he was placed on leave as soon as charges were announced.

Moriarty's trial was scheduled to wrap up at the end of the week, but lawyers have not finished questioning Smith, who will continue his testimony Friday.

More dates will be added when court resumes on Friday.