It's a sordid tale. An Elk Grove businessman who employed teens and brought costumed mascots to children's parties now faces rape and child pornography charges. And no one but police knew Ralph Raymond Evans is also a registered sex offender, with a past misdemeanor conviction for possessing child pornography.
"Very shocked, very appalled," said one woman who was once a client of Evans' company called Mascot Marketers. "His staffing, from what I remember and dealt with, were all teenagers. And then the secondary part of his business being 'Mascot Parties,' all about the kids."
Evans, 39, is a convicted sex offender who registered as required with Elk Grove police, but because his prior conviction is considered a lesser offense he's not posted on the public Megan's Law Web site.
"Actually that went through the rumor mill that he was a registered sex offender. So of course that was the first thing I went and did, looked it up on the Web site, didn't find him there," said the former business client who doesn't want her identity disclosed. "As a proactive parent I'm very disturbed that he wasn't on there."
According to search warrant affidavits obtained by News10, Evans employed as many as 26 people, many of them underage teens, to wear the mascot costumes. Several of them were part of last May's annual Elk Grove Western Festival parade.
What even police didn't know is that Evans changed his first name to Raymond, using that name as owner of Mascot Marketers, Mascot Parties, and other businesses he ran from his home.
"It's one of those things that unfortunately slipped through the cracks as far as his name change and that association," said Elk Grove police Sgt. Chris Trim. "It is scary just because of the nature of the accusations, also his past criminal history."
The new charges mushroomed from an investigation into domestic violence, according to Trim. Evans' ex-wife complained he was violating a restraining order and stalking her.
He's now accused of breaking into her house, installing hidden video cameras and secretly taping his ex-wife and her children. Further investigation brought forward an 18-year-old woman Evans allegedly brought to his house. Evans got her intoxicated, raped her and videotaped the encounter, according to the affidavit.
During the search, detectives found at least 149 pornographic pictures plus other negatives. One now-adult woman identified those as sexually explicit photos of her taken when she was 15 to 17 years old.
As Evans remains in jail on no bail, his HumVee adorned with advertising for his mascot business sits in the driveway of his house. Several security cameras can be seen covering the outside of the house, as well as the house next door which Evans also reportedly owns.
Evans actually has three cases pending against him in Sacramento Superior Court. One involves felony burglary, stalking and secretly recording someone in a private setting. The second includes two counts of rape using involuntary intoxication. The third case is possession of child pornography, a felony due to his prior conviction.
Detectives are waiting for forensic analysis of computers seized from Evans which may contain more illegal images. In the meantime, they're also conducting more interviews of his young employees.
"It is a great concern for us and that's why we've taken the extra steps to make sure we contact people that were employed by his company," said Trim. "We have detectives doing several interviews. However, we haven't had any additional victims regarding any child incidents come forward."
As for his exclusion from Megan's Law, Trim said that's all set by guidelines from the California Department of Justice. Of the 121 registered sex offenders in Elk Grove, 72 are on the public Web site. Statewide, 25 percent of registered sex offenders avoid the public scrutiny, according to DOJ.
"Ya know, I want to know where my children are. And if my children had been around him I would be a lot more offended by the fact that he wasn't on there," said Evans' former client. "If you have been convicted of anything dealing with a child, as a parent and as a community, we need to be able to have that information." "As far as someone sitting at their home computer, typing in his name, he would not come up," said Trim. "So yes, we are relieved that this person is in custody."
Evans' defense attorney, Hayes Gable, declined to comment about the case. Evans could face 20 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
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