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COOK COUNTY, Ill. - A Chicago man accused of recording girls in a Target fitting room in the north suburbs earlier this year is now facing 20 felony charges related to child sexual abuse material.
Evanston Target investigation charges
What we know:
Conor M. Burke, 27, was initially charged with one count of possessing child sexual abuse material on Oct. 6.
On Monday, a Cook County grand jury indicted him on 19 additional counts, according to the Evanston Police Department.
Conor Burke | Cook County Sheriff's Office
The charges come after a forensic examination of Burke’s cellphone uncovered a large amount of suspected child sexual abuse material, police said.
The backstory:
The investigation began Feb. 19, when officers responded to the Target at 1616 Sherman Ave. in Evanston. Three girls reported that a man used a cellphone to record them while they were undressed in a fitting room. They said they saw a phone briefly extend over the partition.
Police said store surveillance footage supported the girls’ account. It showed a man entering a nearby staff room, positioning a phone over the fitting-room wall and leaving the store on foot. Officers did not find the man that day.
Detectives later identified Burke as the suspect. He was arrested in Chicago on April 6, and prosecutors approved one felony count of unauthorized video recording.
Detectives also obtained a search warrant for Burke’s cellphone. That is when the forensic examination uncovered the suspected child sexual abuse material, police said.
Burke was arrested again at his Chicago home on Oct. 5. He appeared for a detention hearing Oct. 7 and returned to court on Nov. 3.
What's next:
Burke is due back in court Nov. 17 in Skokie.
The Source: The information in this story came from the Evanston Police Department and Cook County Sheriff's Office.