A New Providence man has been arrested and charged with using his cell phone to surreptitiously record his teenage stepdaughter in the bathroom of the home they shared, acting Union County Prosecutor Lyndsay V. Ruotolo and New Providence Police Chief Anthony D. Buccelli, Jr., jointly announced Wednesday.
Police say Mr. Esteban Gomez-Barrantes, 34, of Gales Drive is charged with second-degree endangering the welfare of a child and third-degree invasion of privacy.
An investigation initiated by the New Providence Police Department and assisted by the Special Victims Unit (“SVU”) of the Prosecutor’s Office revealed that on Monday, June 3, the victim noticed that her stepfather’s cell phone had been positioned under pieces of laundry in the bathroom, with the video recording function on and an unobstructed view of the room.
The family contacted police, and Gomez-Barrantes was arrested on Friday, October 25, pending a first appearance and detention hearing scheduled to take place in Superior Court.
Convictions on second-degree crimes are commonly punishable by 5 to 10 years in state prison.
These criminal charges are mere accusations.
Each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.