Man Charged With Peeping In Women's Windows In Riverside
CHICAGO (STMW) -- A Berwyn man has been charged with peeping in women's windows and watching them get ready for bed earlier this month in west suburban Riverside.
Ronald J. Wortel, 38, has been charged with two counts of disorderly conduct under the peeping statute, a Class A misdemeanor, according to a statement from Riverside police.
About 11:30 p.m. April 9, police received a 911 call reporting someone looking into apartment windows at a building in the 100 block of East Quincy, police said. While checking the area, officers questioned Wortel, who was found one block east of the scene, but were not able to link him to the incident.
The next day, investigators asked Wortel to voluntarily come into the police department and, after an "extensive" interview, he confessed and gave a written statement that he was peeping in the apartment complex's windows, police said.
Wortel confessed that his wife and son were out of town and, while he was returning from band practice, he decided to walk through the neighborhood while smoking cannabis, police said.
On two separate occasions, he came up to windows and watched two women who live together, ages 30 and 84, get ready for bed while their curtains were not completely closed, police said.
He told investigators he was high and wasn't acting rationally, police said. Officers found no cannabis on him when he was originally stopped or arrested the next day.
Wortel, of the 7000 block of 35th Street in Berwyn, posted bond and has since been released, police said.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2015. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)