A Tennessee man who asked his wife to hold his phone while undergoing a medical procedure has been criminally charged after she allegedly found videos of a teenage babysitter in their bathroom, police have said.
Christopher Thomas Collins is charged with nine counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, according to Hamilton County court records.
WTVC, WDEF and Local 3 News reported that Collins was arrested Wednesday, Jan. 14, after his wife reported the alleged secret recordings to authorities.
Citing an arrest report, Local 3 reported that Collins is accused of setting up hidden cameras in the bathroom and recording the teen while she was naked.
WTVC reported that a police affidavit says Collins’ wife had suspected her husband was cheating, so she went through his phone during the medical procedure.
The woman told investigators that after finding the alleged recordings in a hidden folder on his phone, she eventually went to the church where he served as a deacon for guidance, per the outlet. She was reportedly advised to go to the police.
WSET reported that the woman told investigators she first deleted the files, then later took screenshots from the “recently deleted” folder to document what she had found.
She also alleged that Collins initially told her he installed the cameras to look for rats, per the outlet.
According to WDEF, the wife turned over SD cards from the cameras to the police, who claimed they found nine videos of the teen during a subsequent search.
In a statement to the outlet, Collins’ church, Abba’s House, acknowledged the incident.
“Through the course of a marriage counseling session, Chris Collins’ wife revealed that she had found videos on her husband’s phone of a minor,” the church said of the wife’s allegations, per the outlet. “We immediately reported it to the police and they are handling the situation. We are caring for his wife and kids during this tragic time. Chris Collins had been a member of the church for four years and served as a deacon. He has been removed from that role.”
It is not immediately clear if Collins has entered a plea or retained an attorney. According to court records, he is due back in court on Tuesday, Jan. 20.