Arrested Man Credits 4chan With Helping Him Grow His Child Porn Collection

In what is becoming a frequent occurrence, a man arrested for possession of child pornography told federal agents that he obtained illicit images of minors from 4chan, the notorious web site where memes are born and online jihads hatched.

During a raid last month at his upstate New York home, Ronald Ohlson, 37, told Department of Homeland Security agents that he has “viewed images depicting child pornography for approximately 2 years,” and obtained photos from 4chan and file sharing services like Limewire.

An examination of Ohlson’s computer turned up several images showing prepubescent girls engaged in sexually explicit conduct. A May 16 U.S. District Court complaint, excerpted here, charges Ohlson with receiving child pornography.

4chan founder Christopher "moot" Poole, pictured at right, has claimed that site moderators immediately remove child pornography (and report its posting to law enforcement authorities). Somehow, though, many 4chan visitors have encountered little difficulty in locating illegal images on the popular site.