A licensed social worker was arrested after he allegedly recorded multiple women who were using the bathroom at the McHenry County College in Crystal Lake.
Alejandro A. Zavala-Ramirez, 25, of Woodstock, was charged with three counts of unauthorized videotaping, a Class 4 felony.
A criminal complaint filed in McHenry County Circuit Court alleges Zavala-Ramirez used his cellphone to record three women in one day on February 12.
The incidents occurred at McHenry County College, 8900 Northwest Highway in Crystal Lake, and the McHenry County College Police Department investigated the case.
The complaint said Zavala-Ramirez recorded the three victims over the span of less than an hour.
Zavala-Ramirez recorded the first victim without her consent while she was in a bathroom stall around 3:04 p.m. by placing his phone over the top of the dividing wall from the adjacent stall, the complaint said.
The complaint said Zavala-Ramirez did the same to the two other victims, the second at 3:44 p.m. and the third at 3:54 p.m.
McHenry County College Police Chief Tom Kretschmer declined to provide information on the case, deferring to college administration officials.
“The College has been made aware of an unwanted videotaping incident that took place last week on campus. All impacted individuals have been contacted, and the incident is being addressed, posing no additional risk to our campus community,” the school said in a statement.
“As there may be ongoing legal developments, we cannot share any additional information at this time. Thank you for your understanding,” the statement added.
Zavala-Ramirez is a licensed social worker, according to the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. He obtained the license in August 2022 and it remains active.
He listed his primary practice address in his registration as the Pioneer Center For Human Services in McHenry. The center declined to release employment information for Zavala-Ramirez when contacted Thursday morning.
Zavala-Ramirez was taken into the custody of the McHenry County Jail on Tuesday evening and held for an Initial Appearance Court hearing.
He appeared for the hearing on Wednesday where he was released from custody due to the charges being non-detainable under the Illinois SAFE-T Act.
McHenry County Judge Cynthia Lamb ordered Zavala-Ramirez to have no contact with the three victims and not go to McHenry County Community College.
McHenry County College did not say whether Zavala-Ramirez was an employee or student at the campus.
Zavala-Ramirez is set to appear in court again on March 18 for a status of preliminary hearing.