Man accused of molesting boy in Bartlett park charged in other cases
A registered child sex offender from Elk Grove Village, who prosecutors say sexually abused a 9-year-old boy last month in a Bartlett park, faces new charges.
Ryan French, 35, was ordered held on no bail Thursday on charges of predatory criminal sexual assault of another 9-year-old boy and the attempted criminal sexual abuse of a 13-year-old boy.
French was ordered to register as a sex offender after a 2008 conviction for aggravated criminal sexual abuse.
Prosecutors say French began abusing his most recent 9-year-old accuser in 2015 at the boy's home in Schaumburg. On at least once occasion, the abuse took place in the restroom of a Schaumburg sporting goods store, said Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Caitlin Casey.
The abuse continued when the boy's family moved to Bartlett, Casey said. French admitted to police he had sexual contact with the boy on multiple times over the past year, Casey said. The boy and another child were with French in the Bartlett park on Nov. 14, where prosecutors say he molested the other 9-year-old boy during a game of hide-and-seek that French arranged between the children.
French also faces charges of the attempted criminal sexual abuse of a 13-year-old boy in an Elk Grove Village park on Nov. 13.
The teen was kicking a soccer ball at the Debra Park playground when French approached and acted as a goalie, Casey said. French invited the teen to accompany him across the street to Woodland Meadows Park, which has a field with soccer goals, she said, adding that the field is almost "entirely surrounded by the woods."
Alarmed, the youngster walked away but observed French following him, Casey said. The teen phoned his father, who arrived and called police.
The teen described French to the officers, who interviewed other park users who said they observed French "loitering" there on several occasions, Casey said. As a registered sex offender, French may not visit public parks when children are present.
If convicted of two or more counts predatory criminal sexual assault, French faces a mandatory life sentence. He next appears in court on Dec. 28.