SUN-TIMES MEDIA WIRE September 3, 2011 10:36AM
A reporter posted a story in the Chicago Sun Times on September 3, 2011 about a northwest suburban man that was charged with placing a video camera inside a pen (pen camera) and taping three girls inside their dorm room earlier this year without their knowledge at University of Illinois at Chicago, police said.
According to police, John Holliday, age 19, was charged with a felony count of unauthorized videotaping and two misdemeanor counts of placing a video device in a residence.
Holliday was arrested Friday after it was discovered that he allegedly videotaped three victims inside their U of I at Chicago dorm rooms without their knowledge or consent, according to a police report.
Holliday allegedly admitted to the recordings. He said he used a camera that was hidden inside a pen and purposely left the camera turned on inside the victim’s dorm rooms, the report stated.
The alleged crimes took place on May 3, 2011 for two of the victims and Jan. 27, 2011 for the third victim.
Although pens with hidden video cameras are available for purchase on the market, actually trying to install a camera in a pen requires sophisticated technology skills – not something your average person is capable of doing. The technology required to get a camera inside a pen is high as are the equipment costs. It is very likely that the pen with a hidden camera used in this incident was purchased and not built or assembled by the man charged with this crime.
Dawn