Columbia rape suspect accused of hiding in Iceland

A Columbia man suspected of planting a secret camera in a public library bathroom is accused of hiding out in Iceland.

A federal complaint filed Thursday said Jay Robinson fled to Iceland shortly after his arrest in August. U.S. prosecutors charged him with traveling overseas in an attempt to avoid prosecution in Boone County.

Police suspect Robinson hid a camera inside a unisex bathroom in the Daniel Boone Regional Library on Aug. 2, 2018. A boy found the camera, and reported it to library staff. Officers arrested Robinson when he returned to the library later that day.

In October, the complaint said Boone County prosecutors had filed numerous charges against Robinson, including invasion of privacy, sodomy and rape. Columbia police found several videos through a search warrant of hidden camera footage at the library and Robinson’s own house. Police said they also found videos of Robinson forcibly raping someone.

A judge ordered the state charges be sealed, according to the complaint.

According to federal authorities, Robinson took a flight from Chicago to Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland, on Aug. 5 at 11:40 p.m. An email chain Robinson’s ex-wife gave to Columbia police showed that Robinson had paid an attorney, but signaled he may be leaving.

“I fear you have no idea how bad this is going to get,” the email reportedly said. “I am meeting with an attorney Monday morning. I am pretty certain I am going to be going away for a quite long time. There is no way to undo the hurt and disgustingness I have done.”

Robinson’s ex-wife told investigators on Aug. 5 that she believed he was working as a handy-man.