Guard arrested over illegal surveillance

A state corrections officer at Gouverneur Correctional Facility placed a surveillance camera in an ornamental birdhouse in his home's bathroom to view guests in the room, state police allege.

Dennis J. Koerick Jr., 43, of 35558 Pulpit Rock Road, Antwerp, was arrested Thursday by the state police Bureau of Criminal Investigation on two counts of second-degree unlawful surveillance. He also is cited with tampering with physical evidence.

He was released on $1,000 bail in town of Antwerp Court and awaits grand jury action.

A spokesman for the Department of Correctional Services said he will be suspended without pay pending prosecution of the case. If convicted, he will be fired.

Police said a complaint was received Monday night from a person who suspected she saw a device that appeared to be a camera in the birdhouse. Before police arrived at his home to investigate, he is alleged to have destroyed the surveillance equipment in his outdoor wood boiler.

His setup enabled him to view in his bedroom activity in the bathroom, the investigator said.

Mr. Koerick has been a correctional officer since 1990 and was assigned to Cape Vincent Correctional Facility before transferring in 1995 to the Gouverneur prison.