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Man With Kiddie Porn Screensaver Arrested After Taking Laptop To Best Buy For Repairs
By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 10, 2014
Modified Apr 10, 2014
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By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 10, 2014
Modified Apr 10, 2014
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A Queens man is charged with 15 counts of possession of a sexual performance by a child after graphic images of young girls were found on a laptop he brought to Best Buy for repair. Michael Murray, 61, dropped off the computer at Best Buy at the end of last month. Prosecutors say that when a technician finally got around to fixing it on April 1st, it was immediately discovered that Murray had child pornography on his laptop, because his screensaver featured "multiple images of young girls posing provocatively or engaging in sexual acts with adult men."
The technician notified his supervisor, who in turn called the police. When detectives arrived at Murray's home to question him, he admitted the kiddie porn was his screensaver, according to Queens DA Richard Brown. Prosecutors say Murray also admitted that he has been exchanging files of child pornography with others on the Internet for approximately five years.
If convicted, Murray faces up to four years in prison. "This defendant is alleged to have had some very disturbing photographs of children being sexually abused on his computer," DA Brown said in a statement [pdf]. "These photographs depict real children who will no doubt be emotionally and physically scarred for the rest of their lives."
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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