Child Sex Offender Arrested For Visiting High School: Police

WOODSTOCK, IL -- A registered child sex offender accused of entering Woodstock High School while students were still in attendance Monday afternoon now faces charges, police said Wednesday. James Cornelius IV, of the 300 block of West Calhoun Street in Woodstock, is charged with one count of presence within a school zone by a child sex offender and possession of drug paraphernalia following the Oct. 2 incident at the high school, which is located at 501 W. South Street.

Authorities were first alerted to Cornelius's prescence at the high school on Tuesday after faculty members said they believed a registered child sex offender had been in the school on Monday. A school resource officer and administrators reviewed school surveillance videos, which allegedly showed Cornelius entering the building at 4 p.m. and leaving at 4:10 p.m., according to a news release from the Woodstock Police Department.

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Authorities obtained an arrest warrant and took Cornelius into custody at 8:15 a.m. on Wednesday. Police found marijuana on Cornelius at the time of his arrest. C0rnelius was then transferred to the McHenry County Adult Correctional Facility.

Cornelius remained in custody Wednesday afternoon. His bond has been set at $10,000.

Photo via the Woodstock Police Department