A trial is underway for a man accused of watching and photographing women in their homes in the south end of Halifax.

Barry Sinclair, 50, faces two counts of break and enter and five counts of voyeurism.

Police won’t say, however, whether Sinclair is the suspect dubbed the ‘South End Sleepwatcher’ – a man linked to dozens of cases of watching women sleep, and in some cases even touching them.

Investigators have been tracking the cases for several years and several of them remain unsolved.

An alleged victim in the case, who can’t be identified due to a publication ban, spoke in court Monday.

“You will hear the evidence of voyeurism is different than sexual assault, but falls under the provision that bans publication of identities for offences that have a sexual connotation,” says Crown attorney Denise Smith.

The young woman testified she awoke to find a stranger opening her bedroom door in a home she shares with roommates in September 2011.

She said her encounter with the intruder was over within seconds and that she locked her door, fearing for her safety, as soon as he left her room.

Police say the suspect entered the home through a kitchen window and exited through the front door.

The Crown’s evidence includes bags of women’s clothing and undergarments, as well as a cellphone recovered from a bucket in the home, that didn’t belong to any of its residents.

“They are very unusual charges. I can’t say, in 22 years of prosecuting, I’ve had a chance to do a trial with this type of offence before,” says Smith.

The alleged victim who spoke Monday is just one of five young women who will testify against Sinclair in Nova Scotia Supreme Court this week.

According to the National Parole Board, Sinclair has a history of displaying inappropriate behaviour towards women.

A police officer and two forensic identification specialists also testified in court Monday.

During cross-examination, defence attorney Luke Craggs questioned the thoroughness of the police work done during the investigation.

“I am going to let that come out as the trial unfolds,” says Craggs. “I think you’ll see it as the week progresses, the relevance of the questions I had.”

Five days have been set aside for the trial.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Kelland Sundahl