BOULDER COUNTY, Colo. — A former Arvada High School English teacher was arrested Monday for allegedly creating and distributing sexually explicit content involving juveniles in hypnotic poses, according to the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office.
Patricio Alejandro Illanes, 39, was booked into the Boulder County Jail on several charges, including 40 counts of sexual exploitation of a child — creating, distributing, and possessing.
At the time of his arrest, Illanes was an English teacher at Arvada Senior High School. He was immediately placed on leave and later terminated, the sheriff’s office said.
Illanes' arrest followed an investigation spanning several months, which was conducted by the county’s digital forensics lab and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, according to the sheriff's office.
Detectives began looking into the former teacher in September 2025, after they received multiple CyberTips from Meta regarding an account—later identified as Illanes’—allegedly creating and selling sexually explicit content.
The sheriff's office said that a search of Illanes’ phone uncovered videos of apparent juveniles engaged in sexual acts, shared across encrypted messaging apps and paid pornography platforms.
Investigators say Illanes also filmed juveniles performing “scripts” in front of a green screen while mimicking a hypnotic state, later editing the footage for sexual purposes. Platforms have since removed the content and deactivated his accounts.
Four out‑of‑state individuals have been identified so far, all confirming they were minors during these recorded hypnotic role-play sessions, which, according to the sheriff's office, led to them removing articles of clothing and performing sexually explicit acts at Illanes’ instruction.
Investigators said they also found additional hypnosis‑style images that appear to show clothed students in a school setting.
Previous employers and school programs where he had access to youth—including facilities in Longmont, Boulder, Lafayette, Erie, Denver, and Arvada—have been notified and cooperated with the investigation.
Below is a list of programs and schools where Illanes was known to have access to students:
2010-2015: City of Longmont Children and Youth Services, Longmont, CO
2013-2025: TGTHR (formerly known as Attention Homes) in Boulder and Longmont, CO
2013-2017: New Meridian Alternative High School (formerly known as Olde Columbine) Longmont, CO
2015-2021: Longmont Library – Children and Teens Section, Longmont, CO
2017-2019: Centaurus High School, Lafayette, CO
2019-2020: Mapleton School District (intern), Denver, CO
2019-2023: Erie Middle School, Erie, CO
2019-2023: Erie High School, Erie, CO
2024-2025: Arvada Senior High School, Arvada, CO
Authorities are seeking information from current or former students, coworkers, or anyone with additional details related to the case, and urge potential victims to contact the law enforcement agency in the jurisdiction where any suspected victimization occurred.
- Arvada Police Department - call dispatch at 303-980-7300.
- Boulder County Sheriff’s Office (unincorporated Boulder County, Lyons, Nederland, or Superior) - call Detective Sophie Berman at 720-564-2678.
- Boulder Police Department - call the Boulder Police Tip Line at 303-441-1974. Please provide a way for an investigator to return your call.
- Erie Police Department - call 303-441-4444 and press 2 for the Erie Police Department. Please reference case report 26-004.
- Lafayette Police Department - contact Detective Anna Curran at 303-604-3504 or anna.curran@lafayetteco.gov.
- Longmont Public Safety - call Sergeant Todd Chambers at 303-651-8521.
Denver7 is committed to making a difference in our community by standing up for what's right, listening, lending a helping hand and following through on promises. See that work in action, in the videos above.
