A former Expedia Group employee who amassed 20 terabytes of illicit footage of women by hiding spy cameras throughout the company’s headquarters — including bathrooms — was sentenced to four years in prison Friday in King County Superior Court in Seattle.
Marcelo Vargas-Fernandez, 44, pleaded guilty in December to 14 counts of first-degree voyeurism and two counts of violating a sexual assault protection order for contacting one of the victims in October 2025 in an attempt to convince her not to testify.
Before handing down the sentence, Superior Court Judge Janet Helson heard statements read on behalf of several victims, identified in court only by their initials, who described the lasting trauma and “shattered” sense of security caused by the invasion of their privacy.
“I will wonder for the rest of my life whether there is more footage of me somewhere,” said one of the victims in her statement. “The constant question, ‘am I being watched?’ is exhausting.”
Gary Ernsdorff, senior deputy prosecuting attorney, described the scope of the case as “staggering,” noting that investigators identified nearly 60 potential victims in the 20 terabytes of data seized from Vargas-Fernandez. Ernsdorff told the court that the defendant meticulously organized the illicit footage by name, description, and activity.
“We could spend, frankly, a career going through the evidence and parsing out and trying to identify more victims,” Ernsdorff said.
In addition to bathrooms, prosecutors said in court Friday that cameras were also found mounted under desks to record people sitting in chairs, hidden inside the door and dashboard of his vehicle to record passengers, and even installed inside the bathroom and living room of one victim’s private apartment.
Vargas-Fernandez sat in red prison garb, his hands clasped on a piece of paper on the table, at one point removing his glasses to wipe his eyes as one statement was read.
Later, addressing the court, Vargas-Fernandez apologized to the victims, his family, and his former employer, admitting that he “failed trust” and created “pain and fear.” He told the judge he should have asked for help to deal with depression and personal issues.
“This is my fault,” he added.
His attorney, Court Will, emphasized Vargas-Fernandez’s efforts toward rehabilitation over the past two years, noting that he has completed a psychosexual evaluation, attended weekly sex offender treatment, and installed accountability software on his devices.
“He’s not before the court to make any excuses whatsoever,” Will said.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Helson sentenced Vargas-Fernandez to up to 36 months of community custody and issued no-contact orders to protect the victims.
“These are not victimless crimes,” Judge Helson told him. “These are crimes with real victims who experience serious consequences in their lives.”
Expedia Group temporarily closed its Seattle headquarters for three days following the discovery to conduct security sweeps but found no additional devices at that time.
Class-action lawsuits have been filed over the case, including one against both Expedia Group and its security contractor, Securitas. The suits allege negligence, claiming that the security team failed to act on the initial report of hidden cameras in December 2023, allowing the recording to continue for weeks before police were finally notified in January.
“Expedia is committed to protecting the privacy, safety, and security of our employees and guests across all offices,” an Expedia spokesperson said in a statement today. “We fully cooperated with law enforcement throughout this investigation and are pleased that our support contributed to holding the individual accountable.”
The investigation by Seattle police began after hidden cameras were discovered under the sinks of single-occupancy, gender-neutral bathrooms at the company’s campus on the Seattle waterfront. According to court records, an employee first spotted a recording device taped under a sink on Dec. 4, 2023, and reported it to onsite security. However, the devices were not immediately identified as cameras or turned over to police at that time.
The cameras reappeared weeks later. On Jan. 11, 2024, an employee discovered the devices again and alerted security, who then contacted Seattle police. Witnesses reported seeing Vargas-Fernandez acting suspiciously in the area while the restrooms were closed.
Following his identification as a suspect, Seattle police executed a search warrant at Vargas-Fernandez’s home in Lynnwood on Feb. 1, 2024. An electronics sniffing dog was used to sweep the apartment. The search recovered substantial evidence, including at least 33 spy cameras, 22 SD cards, and six hard drives.
Ernsdorff, the prosecuting attorney, said in court that investigators found no evidence the footage was uploaded or shared online, despite finding evidence that Vargas-Fernandez had visited websites featuring similar illicit content. However, he acknowledged that victims may never have complete certainty about whether their images were distributed.
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