A 39-year-old child sex offender is accused of pretending to be a doctor to get near ill children at a Chicago hospital in May 2022.
In 2002, authorities required Christopher Chothen register as a sex offender after he was convicted of abducting, restraining, and sexually abusing a 15-year-old, CWB Chicago reported Friday.
That crime occurred when Chothen was 17 years old, the outlet noted.
Per the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network’s (RAINN) website, a sex offender registry keeps track of convicted sex offenders in a state, and such registries normally include the person’s address, details on their appearance, and criminal history.
“All fifty states require individuals convicted of certain sex crimes to register. Those convicted of more violent crimes are typically required to remain registered for a longer period and to update their address more frequently,” the organization said.
Meanwhile, the CWB report said Chothen was most recently accused of using fraudulent identification to gain entrance into secure wings at the University of Chicago Hospital in May of last year.
According to Assistant State’s Attorney Anne McCord, the ID card featured a doctor’s name but allegedly had Chothen’s image on it.
One of the areas the man is accused of accessing was for children where several of them were present at the time. However, he was not accused of hurting or making contact with the young people at the hospital.
Meanwhile, Chothen is required to register as a permanent sex offender but has reportedly failed to register since 2016. He was also apparently convicted of failure to register several times in the past.
In addition, he was previously convicted of impersonating a policeman, being a sex offender in a school zone, possessing a methamphetamine precursor, and intimidation.
Now, Chothen faces charges of violating the sex offender registry act along with being in a children’s hospital as a child sex offender.
“Judge Ankur Srivastava ordered him to pay a $50,000 bail deposit to go home on electronic monitoring. The judge said that Chothen is barred from having contact with anyone under 18 except his own child,” the CWB report stated.
According to the Illinois State Police website, Chothen’s child sex offender information says he lives at an address in Chicago.
Another convicted sex offender in Illinois allegedly murdered a 10-year-old girl named Destiny Huggins in Rockford, Breitbart News reported July 10.
The suspect was identified as 44-year-old Antonio Monroe.
“This is a real life nightmare with a real life monster,” Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara said during a press conference regarding the case.