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By: Michael de Yoanna

Category: Economy, Crime, Panorama, Business

Posted: February 5, 2010 11:45 AM

How Did Local Sex Offenders Slide Under the Radar?

William Barnason, a 57-year-old man who was released from prison in 2001 after serving more than 14 years for the rapes of three Long Island girls, had the keys to more than 50 apartments in New York City as the superintendent. But after being exposed by news reporters, Barnason's keys have been taken away by the landlord (via the New York Post). National outlets are dissecting the drama, while a couple of Colorado's own sex offenders make local headlines for similar reasons. Edward Quintana, the 65-year-old housekeeping manager at the Sleep Inn near Denver International Airport, is another offender who was allowed access to private rooms. Quintana was fired after 9News' Kyle Clark raised questions about the housekeeper's several misdemeanor sex crime convictions. Eric Lee, the hotel's owner, admits he hadn't been aware of Quintana's past: "I'm just dumbfounded." Moreover, the news station found that motel employees do not face criminal background checks. In January, Aurora police investigated a report that Quintana sexually assaulted a special needs student involved in a job-training program at the motel, but police are not seeking charges because they don't believe an assault took place. Meanwhile, at Colorado State University, Thomas Skillman, a sex offender who admitted to abusing a middle school student while working in the Poudre School District, was asked to move out of on-campus housing he shares with his girlfriend, according to the Fort Collins Coloradoan.
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