Santa Rosa restaurant manager arrested for recording patrons in women’s restroom
Dec 24, 2024
(KRON) -- A Santa Rosa restaurant manager has been arrested for allegedly recording patrons in the women's restroom secretly. According to the Santa Rosa Police Department, officers were dispatched on Monday to the Ohana Hawaiian BBQ at 2150 Santa Rosa Avenue to investigate a report of a cell phone hidden in the women's restroom.
A woman, who police said made a habit of checking vents in public restrooms for hidden recording devices, examined the air vent in the single-user restroom. She saw what appeared to be a cell phone hidden in the vent with the camera facing the restroom's interior.
The woman contacted Santa Rosa PD, notified the restaurant manager and then guarded the bathroom until police arrived. Arriving at the restaurant, officers removed the vent cover and recovered the phone, which had been recording for around 46 minutes.
Burglars ram San Leandro GameStop, steal video game consoles: PD
Officers determined that the phone belonged to the restaurant manager, 37-year-old Daniel Nam of Santa Rosa. Detectives with the Santa Rosa PD Domestic Violence Sexual Assault Team (DVSA) responded and took over the investigation.
A preliminary investigation revealed that Nam used a concealed recording device to invade the privacy of at least one victim. Detectives seized his cell phone and laptop and will be reviewing the contents of the devices to determine how long he had been recording people in secret and to identify additional victims.
Nam was booked into Sonoma County Jail. The officer booking him into jail requested a bail enhancement of $200,000, which police said a superior court judge approved.
Police say that while they don't have a timeline for how long Nam had been secretly recording people, they believe it could have been occurring for several months. Anyone with information regarding the case, or who believes they may have been a victim, is asked to contact Santa Rosa PD.
Additional charges may be filed against Nam as additional evidence is discovered and victims are identified.