A two-count criminal complaint unsealed in federal court Monday charges a U.S. Border Patrol supervisor with video voyeurism, saying he placed a video camera in a women's restroom at the agency's facility in Chula Vista.
Armando Gonzalez, 45, is also charged with making false statements. He made his initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jill Burkhardt, who set bail at $50,000 and issued an order forbidding the defendant from contacting alleged victims, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
A March 19 preliminary hearing and April 2 arraignment were set for Gonzalez, who was arrested Friday.
The complaint alleges Gonzalez made false statements when he said images captured on the hidden camera that were not related to a drug investigation were deleted, when in fact they were saved.
Gonzalez is accused of capturing images of women's private areas without their consent beginning in July 2013 and continuing through at least Jan. 9, according to the charging document.
According to a statement of probable cause, the hidden video camera contained video files showing a white male believed to be Gonzalez using a screwdriver to install the camera in a drain in the women's restroom.
Investigators said they searched the defendant's office last month and found video files containing images recorded inside the restroom that showed multiple female victims, including images of them naked or partially undressed as they changed clothes or used the toilet.
According to the statement of probable cause, Gonzalez told officials that he placed the video recorder in the restroom because he suspected one of his employees was engaging in illegal drug use at work, according to the statement of probable cause.
