Cops: Palatine woman videotaped teen naked

A 45-year-old Palatine woman was charged Tuesday with manufacturing and distributing child pornography after authorities say she videotaped a teenage victim in a washroom and sent the images to an unknown male she met on Craigslist.

Palatine police arrested Mary Cordes, of the 1900 block of N. Cambridge Court, Monday after the images were found on her work computer.

Cook County Circuit Court Judge Joseph Urso set Cordes' bond at $30,000 Tuesday in Rolling Meadows. If convicted, she faces between four and 15 years in prison.

Police say the taping grew out of Cordes' online relationship with a 16-year-old boy that dates back to July. According to police, the two sent each other sexually explicit e-mails as well as nude images and videos of themselves. The teenager requested video of the victim as well, police said. Cordes agreed and on Oct. 30, using a recorder concealed in a pen, videotaped the victim, said assistant state's attorney Shilpa Patel.

Cordes then transferred the video to a flash drive intending to edit it at work, police said. Problems arose after Cordes downloaded the images to her work computer, prompting her to ask a co-worker for help. After noticing the lewd images, the co-worker notified a supervisor who confiscated the computer and called Elk Grove police. They contacted Palatine police, to whom Cordes admitted videotaping the victim, authorities said.

The arrest resulted from a joint investigation by the Palatine and Elk Grove Village police departments, both members of the Cook County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.