A man who installed a hidden camera inside of a Palm Springs hotel room in 2016 was convicted Tuesday of burglary, drug, and other charges.
Oscar Patino-Aguilar, 32, admitted to hiding the camera inside of a bathroom light fixture in a room at thh Baymont Inn & Suites that was being occupied by two women and two 16-year-old girls.
Two days after they checked in, one of the women discovered Aguilar in her room – despite a”Do Not Disturb” sign which was placed on the door – with the lights off and the curtains drawn. The women searched the room and found “a small electronic object hugging the light bulb” which was “pointing in the direction of the toilet,” according to court records obtained by the Desert Sun.
Police were called to the hotel and Aguilar at first denied the charges, but then admitted that he placed the device on the light bulb. He was immediately fired from the hotel, which was at the time known as the Comfort Inn, and staff searched the hotel for more cameras – saying they came up empty.
The incident was mentioned on a 1-star review on Yelp on June 13:
A Murrieta jury took less than a day before they returned with guilty verdicts on felony counts of burglary and bringing drugs into a county jail, reports KESQ. Patino-Aguilar also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of attempting to use a concealed recording device and possession of controlled substances.
He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 8.
