Man videotaped others in Cypress College bathroom, police say

A man arrested for videotaping another man in a Cypress College bathroom stall has admitted to committing the same crime 15 times, and police are looking for more victims.

Authorities say the victim of the Tuesday taping entered a stall just after 3 p.m. and saw a hand come underneath the partition and point a cellphone camera at him in while he remained undressed.

Cypress Police Officer Paulo Morales said the victim then shouted at 19-year-old Johnny Nguyen of Stanton, left his own stall and detained Nguyen until authorities arrived.

“Information found on the camera indicates he videotaped at least two other victims on the same day,” Morales said.

Once detained, Nguyen admitted to committing the same crime 15 other times in the last 12 months, all within various men’s restrooms at Cypress College.

Authorities arrested Nguyen for a single misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct. He was booked at the Cypress city jail and released with a citation.

Morales says the suspect faces up to a year in jail. He is due back in court for arraignment May 2.

The Cypress Police Department is asking anyone who has information on this incident or believes they are a victim to contact detectives at (714) 229-6631.

 

Police seek man using camera in ladies’ room

CYPRESS – Police want help identifying a man they say took pictures of a woman inside a Cypress College restroom earlier this week.

A campus security camera captured a picture of the man as he left the Humanities Building after the Monday incident, authorities said.

Police say this man was taking pictures or video of a woman inside a ladies’ restroom at Cypress College on Feb. 13. He has not been identified. A security camera at the campus captured this shot of him after the alleged incident.

COURTESY OF CYPRESS COLLEGE

A statement from campus officials describes the man as being 5 feet, 10 inches tall and heavy-set. He wore black pants and a black hoodie, with a red collar visible under the sweatshirt. He was carrying a black backpack.

College officials say they believe the incident was an isolated one.

“This seems to be the only one of its nature, and we certainly hope it’s the last one,” college spokesman Marc Posner said.

Campus authorities said the suspect tried to either snap pictures of the woman or videotape her; it’s unclear what sort of a camera he used, Posner said.

A campus alert urges students to be aware of what’s going on around them, to program the school’s Public Safety dispatch number into their cell phones and to travel in groups.

“Hopefully getting the word out will help to prevent another incident,” Posner said.

Investigators are asking anyone with information about the man or the incident to call Campus Safety at 714-484-7387 or the Cypress Police Department at 714-229-6600.

 

Mickadeit: Fight over Za’Zell’s kids

The story of Za’Zell Preston, the Anaheim woman allegedly murdered by her husband on Christmas Day, didn’t end with her funeral. As I promised her family when they gave me extraordinary access to their lives, I would follow the tragedy’s various threads: the murder case, the custody of Za’Zell’s children, her legacy at Cypress College, and domestic violence in O.C. in general.

Za’Zell left behind three children, two girls, now ages 8 and 3, and a boy, age 3 months. The latter is the product of the union of Za’Zell and William Wallace, who allegedly beat her to death. Wallace’s arraignment is scheduled Feb. 24. The most immediate legal issue is who ends up with the children. It has been contentious within Za’Zell’s family, and that spilled over into a county Social Services Agency meeting that I was invited to attend Monday – only to be booted out when I said I could keep the children’s names out of my reporting, but not what else would be revealed at the meeting.

Saidell Preston, right, accepts a hug from another mourner at the funeral of Preston’s daughter, Za’Zell, last month. Saidell Preston and her husband are seeking custody of Za’Zell’s three children. They are opposed by Za’Zell’s sister. County Social Services is sorting it out.

ANA VENEGAS, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

I knew going into the hearing, however, that in the days immediately after Za’Zell’s murder, the children were at the county’s Orangewood facility. They were then released to Za’Zell’s sister, a 40-year-old woman who lives in Irvine. Za’Zell’s mother, Saidell Preston, 61, told me that she wanted ultimate custody of the children but had not contested temporary placement with Za’Zell’s sister because Saidell and her husband, Ron, lived in seniors-only housing. They were preparing to move to housing that could accommodate their grandchildren when they were told that Social Services intended to permanently place them with the sister. They were baffled as to why.

Other than the sister, it appears Za’Zell’s other surviving family members think Saidell and Ron should raise the kids. They are both a young 61, are retired and can therefore devote all their time to the children and, more importantly, they have a relationship with the children. The sister, in contrast, works full time and had virtually no relationship with Za’Zell or her children at the time of Za’Zell’s death. The sister also has other children at home to care for.

“We feel we are in a fight for the lives and well-being of our dead daughter’s children,” Saidell wrote to a social worker last month. “It is my husband and I who had daily responsibility for the children while Za’Zell was attending class and work all these years.”

Why the sister wants the children or thinks she and her new husband would be better parents, I wasn’t able to learn because, as I said, I was kicked out before I could hear her speak, and everybody who stayed had to agree to a gag order. All I know is that at the end of the meeting, the kids were still with the sister but no final decision had been made.