Weld County prosecutors filed sexual misconduct charges Tuesday against a University of Northern Colorado theater professor accused of secretly videotaping young men as they used his toilet.
Vance Fulkerson, 63, faces one felony count of sexual exploitation of a child, one misdemeanor count of unlawful sexual contact and one count of marijuana possession.
Fulkerson was arrested Thursday after police discovered a wireless video camera hidden in an alarm clock on the back of the toilet in his home.
Greeley police spokesman Sgt. Joe Tymkowych said the camera, which filmed guests urinating or showering, fed into a TV in Fulkerson’s bedroom. He said police found “numerous” recorded tapes and DVDs in his bedroom. In a locked safe, police found 29 images of boys as young as 5 in provocative poses.
Fulkerson, a professor at UNC for 18 years, has been placed on administrative leave. He posted $5,000 bond and is due in court July 30.
UNC spokesman Nate Haas said the university has launched an independent, outside investigation into Fulkerson’s activities, and to determine who knew about any possible indiscretions, and when.
The charges against Fulkerson were filed after a former UNC student who had been staying at the teacher’s house told police he believed he had been videotaped while using the toilet.
According to the arrest report, the student was just leaving the bathroom as Fulkerson went in.
The student said he noticed Fulkerson’s bedroom door open and so he peeked in and saw five TV sets, one of which was showing a live feed of Fulkerson urinating in the same bathroom he had just left.
Fulkerson told police he initially placed the camera in the bathroom to keep track of his aging parents. Fulkerson declared bankruptcy and said he began selling tapes of “paid models” using his bathroom to help pay back $60,000 in medical bills.
Fulkerson is not allowed to be on campus or in contact with students, Haas said. But anger among the university community was growing Tuesday.
“I can tell you that the school putting him only on a leave of absence, rather than automatically firing him immediately, sickens me and several others who work in northern Colorado,” said former UNC student Joel Adam Chavez.
But in a statement, president Kay Norton said, “I want to assure you that we absolutely do not tolerate or condone the behavior that has been alleged.”
