What to Know
A woman staying at a North Carolina vacation rental in October 2025 made a disturbing discovery inside the home. While in town for a wedding in Corolla Beach, she claimed she found hidden cameras inside the home’s bathroom and bedroom.
She contacted the Currituck County Sheriff’s Department, and deputies immediately began investigating the alleged crime. They linked the cameras to Philip Joseph “Joey” DeSena, a 44-year-old Jeopardy! winner. Prosecutors charged DeSena with two counts of felony secret peeping.
DeSena allegedly hid the cameras in wall chargers.
According to court documents obtained by WBTV, DeSena, who lives in Raleigh, allegedly hid the cameras in black USB wall chargers. Police issued a warrant claiming DeSena installed the cameras “with the intent to capture the image of another without their consent.”
He reportedly turned himself in to police on December 1, and authorities released him on December 3 when he posted a $5,000 bond.
DeSena apologized in court.
Per WAVY, DeSena appeared in court on July 27, 2026. He reportedly told the court that he was “deeply sorry,” and knows “how much this affected certain people.” He added that he does not expect forgiveness from everyone.
Though he has a degree in physics, his attorney explained that DeSena is a full-time dad to his two small children. DeSena accepted a plea agreement. He completed a psycho-sexual evaluation before the hearing. The evaluation concluded that DeSena is at a below-average risk of becoming a repeat offender.
The court did not order him to register as a sex offender. A judge sentenced him to five years’ probation and continued mental health evaluations.
The sentence didn’t fit the crime for some people.
Many sounded off in the comment section on WAVY’s YouTube channel. They felt that DeSena got off way too easily.
“What another complete joke of a sentence, why not just prescribe him to take 2 baby aspirin and take a nap ,our justice system is PATHETIC !!!!” Someone commented.
This person agreed, writing, “It is completely unacceptable that he doesn’t have to register as a sex offender, his actions should be the determining factor, but nope, a doctor determined that registering wouldn’t be necessary! As if! That’s a law that should be changed!”
Others wondered what the heck DeSena thought before putting the cameras in the home. “’Alex, I’ll take voyeurism for 2 years probation’ In all seriousness, I wonder if this guy with a physics degree once thought to himself as he was installing those cameras, ‘Gee, if I get caught my life will be ruined and I might lose my family.’
DeSena once appeared on ‘Jeopardy!‘
According to NJ.com, DeSena appeared on Jeopardy! in November 2024 and won $44,698 during his two-day stint. He also appeared on the Champions Wildcard Tournament and made it to the semifinals before losing to Drew Goins and Jen Feldman.
Per a Reddit post, DeSena explained the reasoning behind one of his final Jeopardy! Moments.
“I normally am not a ‘write a shoutout during FJ’ person, but I figured that with this gift of being on the Alex Trebek stage again, I wanted to send a message to my 4-month-old daughter, Lorelei, so that she might see it years in the future and smile,” DeSena wrote.
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