The Curious Case of Christopher Comtois (Part II)

Orlando

 

    

     It was a typical Disney day in Orlando.  Warm in January, tourists in shorts and kids anxious to meet Mickey.  It was the first Saturday of 2002 and Christopher Comtois had a plan.  Or maybe he didn't.  But he certainly had time on his hands.  Comtois was a fairly talented and accomplished musician.  He had made his name in the Christian rock world.  He was talented, charismatic and had a big personality.  He was at ease on stage and played a multitude of instruments.  He sang, wrote music and had toured the country with his band opening up for a number of big names in the Christian rock world.  He was a man of faith who spoke the good word through his music.  Unfortunately, he was also a registered sex offender.  

     Born into a family of musical and theater talents in New York, Comtois tried hard to make it as a gospel-rock musician. In the late 1990s, he toured and opened as soloist for popular Christian singer Rebecca St. James.  At age 30, on that Saturday in Orlando, he was nearly three years removed from his first arrest.   in 1998, Brevard County (Florida) sheriff's investigators arrested and charged him with exposing and fondling himself in front of four schoolgirls outside an elementary school.  He served no time in prison but was sentenced to a five-year probation. It called for him to have no unsupervised contact with minors under 18 and no stays overnight where children under 16 may be present.  

     Later that same year, Illinois authorities served an arrest warrant for him for molesting a minor in Bolingbrook, a village 26 miles south of Chicago.  He was sentenced to three years in July 1999 but served only 15 months in a state prison because of good conduct and new sentencing guidelines.  Christopher Comtois was a registered sex offender in Illinois and Florida.  But as he walked around Orlando, those days were behind him.  He was free and still playing his music at Universal Studio's City Walk.  

     At the same time that Comtois was casually strolling through his day, thousands of young cheerleaders from all over the country were practicing and performing at a national Christian cheerleader’s competition.  This is the sort of thing that kids put big red circles around on their calendars.  A trip away from the cold of winter during a school holiday break with a bunch of their friends.  Staying in hotels, swimming outside when the pools are shut and frozen at home and showing off their talents against other kids from everywhere else.  Not to mention the days and hours of fun at the multitude of theme parks and attractions that made Orlando Orlando.  It can be the highlight of the year or a lifetime for the kids who are lucky enough to make the trip.  

     After a long day of competition, a group of young cheerleaders and their chaperones and coaches were relaxing back at their hotel.  Some at the pool and some just running around enjoying their freedom away from home.  This hotel in particular was a hub for most of the schools who were involved in the competition.   The mysterious path of Christopher Comtois somehow brought him to that same hotel.  And it didn't take him long to unleash his charm and charisma on one unsuspecting group.  He seemed harmless.  He was well spoken and began to spin his tales of life on the road as a touring leader of a band.  The girls were star struck and the coaches enjoyed his presence.  He answered questions of what it was like to be in a band, sang some songs and even told stories to the teens about hanging out with local pop sensation Britney Spears.  This went on for quite some time.  Finally, the adults in the group called it a night and summoned the girls to say their goodbyes.  Comtois invited them all to come see his band the next night and even posed for a photo with the entire group.  He told them to check out his website, which was filled with his music and photos from all of the stories he had told.  Everyone headed back to their rooms and Comtois went his own way.  The girls were happy and excited to have met someone "so famous."  

     Later on that night a few of the girls were still up and hanging out in one of their rooms.  Naturally on trips like this the nights often turn into late night slumber parties.  The door was open and suddenly Comtois was standing in the hallway looking in.  The girls were naturally excited and invited him in to continue hearing the exciting life that he had led.  But from the onset, something wasn't right.  His jeans were wet and he explained that he had been in the hot tub and had to put his pants back on as he didn't have any change of clothing with him.  He asked if it would be ok if he used their restroom to dry himself off.  The next thing the girls knew, their famous and popular musician was standing in their room with a towel around his waste with his shirt, socks and stocking cap still in tact.  He really wanted to stay and talk.  It was getting very late and although they found it odd that he was only wearing a towel around his waste, they let him sit on the bed as he kept the charm going.  He began to ask odd questions about whether they had boyfriends back home and if they were still virgins.  Each time he moved or got up, the towel around his waste would fall to the ground.  He sheepishly put it back around himself as he apologized over and over for the accident.  By this point in time, the girls were getting nervous.  A man in his early 30's was in their room exposing himself well after midnight.  They began to act as if they were tired and wanted to go to sleep, but Comtois ignored them and continued to try to regale them with his musical exploits. He complained of being cold and tried to warm his feet by putting them underneath one of the girls sitting near him.  The girls were tense and unsure about what to do next.  Two of the girls were staying in other rooms but were afraid to leave the group.  They never panicked but pressed harder for him to leave so they could get some rest before the big day of competition ahead.  Finally, the gospel singer relented and said that he, too, should go get some sleep.  He put his pants back on, said his goodbyes and left the room.  The girls were relieved.  They were innocent and unaware of the seriousness of what had just happened.  But they were also very tired and did want to get to bed.  It was now past 2am.  

     The two girls who were staying in other rooms left together but they had to go in opposite directions.  One went left and then an immediate right down another hall towards the elevator.  In an instant she was gone.  The other had a long stretch of hallway to walk to get to the stairwell as she was just one floor below.  As she walked along the carpet, the door to the stairs at the end opened and it was Chris Comtois.  It had been nearly an hour since he left the room but was obviously still hanging around the hotel.  The girl stopped in her tracks.  Comtois began to motion her to come to him. He wanted to escort her back to her room to make sure that she was safe.  She didn't move.  He pressed and assured her that he meant no harm.  He simply wanted to make sure that she was going to be ok and that she got back to her room.  One can only imagine what goes through the mind of a 14 year old girl in the middle of the night in a situation that most people never have to face.  Was he harmless?  He looked harmless.  Maybe he was just weird.  He was a "rock star" after all.  But she really had no options.  It wasn't like he was threatening her.  Her instinct told her to run but for reasons unknown, she walked slowly towards him as he continued to assure her that everything was going to be ok.  He held the door open for her as she slowly walked past him into the stairwell.  She began to walk down the stairs as he followed behind.  And then it happened.  Without warning or words, he grabbed her arm.  She resisted and he held on tight.  He put his other hand around her neck and over her mouth to keep her quiet as he began to whisper to her how attractive she was.  She was powerless to move as her body froze from fright.  He kept his arm tightly around her neck and over her mouth as she felt him caressing her under her cheerleading dress with his other hand.  All the while telling her how hot she was and how he couldn't believe that she was only 14.  At some point, minutes later, or hours, who knows, she heard him jostling with his belt and unbuttoning his pants.  And then she heard strange noises as he began to moan repeatedly.  This went on for a long time, she felt.  And the moans got louder and louder until he released her without any words.  She didn't look back as she ran down the rest of the stairs and finally to her room.  She unlocked the room, ran inside as the door slammed behind her and she fell to the floor in tears.  

     The security cameras caught Comtois calmly walking out of the lower stairwell door and out the front door of the hotel just minutes later.  Meanwhile, the girl's roommates woke up, turned on the light and began to hear the horrible tale through tears and uncontrollable hyperventilating.  They called the coaches and parents, who immediately mobilized to find out what had happened.  Anger, confusion and questions filled the early morning as the hotel security and local police were called.  And sometime after 5am, the Orlando PD arrived, led by Detective Geoff Laney, who was now officially investigating his first case as a detective.  He had just been promoted from a uniformed officer and had been eagerly awaiting his first chance to solve a crime.