4chan Linked to Federal Child Porn Probe

CYBERSPACE—The Smoking Gun is reporting that the infamous bulletin board 4chan has been identified as the possible source of images of child porn discovered on an iPhone owned by a sailor aboard the USS Boxer. The discovery of the images eventually led to an investigation conducted by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

Court filings made available by The Smoking Gun reveal that the sailor who owned the phone, Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class Collin Campbell, admitted retrieving the images from 4chan after a fellow sailor discovered the images after borrowing the phone. NCIS agents seized “several items of electronic media … from Campbell’s person and berthing area” on the USS Boxer on Oct. 15.

“When questioned by a Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent, Collin Campbell admitted to ‘downloading between 10-20 images of child pornography’ that he claimed to have found on 4chan.org, the notorious image and message board,” the site reported. “He added that the images were on his iPhone and a personal computer in his home in National City, a San Diego suburb.”

An update Friday by The Smoking Gun notes, “In an e-mail today, Ed Buice, an NCIS public affairs officer, confirmed the agency’s probe of Campbell, but said that no charges have been filed against the sailor, who is not in custody."