Man pleads guilty to secretly recording nude videos

COEUR d’ALENE — A man is in jail after pleading guilty to secretly recording nude videos of children and adults.

Michael S. Wall, 51, of Coeur d’Alene, pleaded guilty Monday to four counts of sexual exploitation of a child by possession of sexually exploitative material and four counts of video voyeurism by use of a device, all felonies. 

Wall pleaded guilty in accordance with Alford to the first count of sexual exploitation of a child, specifically regarding possession of “approximately 390 photos and/or videos” depicting child sexual abuse. By entering an Alford plea, Wall did not admit guilt but acknowledged there was enough evidence to convict him at trial. 

The Idaho Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force began investigating after a cloud storage company reported that a user, later identified as Wall, had uploaded child sexual abuse material to his account. 

A search of Wall’s storage account yielded more than 400 files containing child sexual abuse material, according to court records, as well as more than 200 files “that appeared to be self-produced ‘up-skirt’ type videos” of children and adults, dating back as far as 2006. 

Some of the videos appeared to be recorded at Wall’s former workplace, Willamette Valley Bank in Coeur d’Alene, where he was employed as a loan officer. Wall also placed a hidden camera in the men’s showers at Peak Fitness in Coeur d’Alene, court records said. 

Prosecutors said Wall secretly placed recording devices in places “where a person would have a reasonable expectation of privacy,” including bathrooms and under a dining table, doing so at multiple locations in Kootenai and Bonner counties between 2020 and 2024. These devices captured videos of adults and children bathing or in states of undress, according to court records. 

Police arrested wall in June on a $500,000 warrant. He later posted bail. 

Wall originally faced 10 counts of sexual exploitation of a child and seven counts of video voyeurism. In exchange for Wall’s guilty plea, prosecutors dismissed some of the charges. The remaining counts encompass all crimes outlined in the original charges, according to court records. 

After Wall pleaded guilty, First District Judge Ross Pittman remanded Wall into custody while he awaits a Dec. 5 sentencing. 

Sexual exploitation of a child by possession of sexually exploitative material is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, while video voyeurism carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.