Schoolteacher Recorded Naked Males At Local Gym

A disgraced schoolteacher, who tried to record shower users at his local gym, destroyed his career and is now working as a postman, a court heard.

English teacher and former Deputy Head of House at Berkshire’s Sandhurst School, Hein Dinkelmann, 36, was arrested at work and has not been back since.

The University of Johannesburg graduate, of The Courtyard, Southwell Park Road, Camberley, Surrey fought the charges for over three years, but was eventually convicted by a jury.

He was found guilty by a Chichester Crown Court jury of two counts of attempted voyeurism on March 15 and April 8, 2022 at the Camberley gym.

Last Friday, Recorder David Brock told him at Brighton Law Courts: “At your local gym you twice attempted to take photo or video footage, using your phone of two males, a man and a fifteen year-old boy.

“You placed your phone through the gap in the partition at the bottom of the shower and were seen on both occasions, but managed to get away.

“CCTV was examined and you were identified via the membership card you swiped in with.”

After his arrest Surrey Police examined Dinkelmann’s phone and found further images of unidentified naked males in showers.

Dinkelmann had also recorded himself in the same gym changing rooms indecently exposing himself.

“Your argument that it was somebody else was rejected by the jury,” Recorder Brock told the first-time offender.

“On both occasions you were seen, but got away.”

Recorder Brock said before sentencing Dinkelmann: “He should not have brought this to trial at all. 

“He is riddled with guilt, it was overwhelming, it was an overwhelming case.

“He is a postman now isn’t het he? He obviously has got some interest in taking photos of men in showers.”

Prosecutor Alice Holloway told the court Dinkelmann only attended the gym for ten to fifteen minutes on both occasions and made a deliberate attempt to record the showering victims.

“I was arrested at school,” Dinkelmann told the court, adding he has not returned to Sandhurst since.

Sandhurst is a coeducational school for both boys and girls aged eleven to eighteen years-old.

“I am not going to send you into custody,” Recorder Brock told him, placing Dinkelmann on a twelve-month Community Order, which includes 20 days of rehabilitation.

He ordered him to pay £2,000 costs a £95 victim surcharge and made him subject to a five-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order, which prohibits him taking any recording device into any gym or leisure centre.

“If you breach that order you will go to prison.”