On March 8th, 2023, a Redding woman discovered a concealed video recording device in the guest bathroom of her home, prompting her to contact the Redding Police Department.
The woman had confronted her husband, 34-year-old Ryan Rovito, about the hidden camera, to which he admitted knowledge but promised to remove and dispose of the device.
Concerned that Rovito may have maliciously recorded their young children, the wife seized the camera and its connected hard drive before he could destroy them.
Redding Police Detectives, armed with a search warrant for the electronic devices, enlisted the help of High-Tech Crimes Detectives to perform a preliminary forensic analysis. Their investigation uncovered over 900 images of child pornography and multiple videos from the hidden bathroom camera. The footage revealed both children and adults using the bathroom, seemingly unaware that they were being recorded.
Detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Rovito from a Shasta County Superior Court Magistrate. Rovito was apprehended during a traffic enforcement stop near the intersection of Buenaventura Blvd. and Placer Street.
He was subsequently booked at the Shasta County Jail on charges related to possession of child pornography and the secret recording of an identifiable undressed person.
The Redding Police Department is urging anyone with information about this incident to come forward.