A 26-year-old man appeared in court on Monday after he was allegedly caught recording a 10-year-old girl inside of a bathroom stall within an elementary school.
Officials say that on March 15th Brian Mintmier asked employees at Ramsey Elementary school if he could use the restroom.
Mintmier was then found in the school 40 minutes later, allegedly holding his phone under a 10-year-old girl’s stall to record her.
Employees say the child told them that she was using the restroom and noticed someone holding a cellular phone under the stall and recording her.
Officials were eventually able to get Mintmier out of the restroom and then held him in a office until police arrived.
Authorities searched Mintmier and found a box cutter on his person. They then took him into custody.
During the hearing Monday, Mintmier’s attorney Casey White called the incident a misunderstanding :
“There’s confusion on his part and unfortunately he chose the wrong building to go into to use the restroom,” said White.
She also reported that Mintmier is has a mental health issue :
There was some confusion,” said White. “Obviously there’s a mental health component to this matter and right now, while he’s incarcerated, he is addressing that.”
Mintmier is facing several charges including invasion of privacy. His next court date is on May 2nd.
The employee who granted access to Mintmier has been placed on leave pending an investigation.
A letter was sent out to parents apologizing for the incident.