Researcher `ran porn library on the Internet'

A university researcher ran a computer library of pornographyincluding indecent pictures of children and allowed others tosupply and copy pictures from his collection, a court was toldyesterday.

In what is believed to be the first case of its kind, AlbanFellows and Stephen Arnold are charged under the Protection ofChildren Act and the Obscene Publications Act in connection withdistributing child pornography from the collection through theInternet.

Birmingham Crown Court was told how Fellows, 26, from Moseley inBirmingham, worked as a research assistant in the plasma meltingunit at the University of Birmingham where he had access to themain computer. He was a skilled computer operator and trusted bythe university to install and maintain computers.

But, unknown to the authorities, he attached a hard disk memoryto the university's main computer where he stored his library ofpornography, a collection he named

Melbourne Inman, for the prosecution, told the court: "MrFellows had a library, a library of pornography. It wasn't justanyone who could use it, you had to have a library ticket and MrFellows was the man from whom you had to get the ticket. You wouldusually have to have another ticket holder vouch for you. Access tothis library was only for those who could be trusted. If youprovided enough you would see it all. Mr Fellows clearly waseffectively using a system of `what have you before I let you lookat my stuff'. That was how it worked."

Mr Fellows is charged with possessing four indecent pictures ofchildren which he intended to distribute. He is also accused ofpossessing two obscene pictures of adults stored on his computerhard disk.

Mr Arnold, 24, from Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, worked as agraphics co-ordinator for Hughes Network Systems Limited in thetown.

He is charged with distributing three of the indecent picturesof children to Fellows through his computer, between February andApril 1994. Both men deny all the charges.

In April 1994, police arrested Mr Fellows at BirminghamUniversity and seized his hard disk. He admitted having pornographyin the computer and accepted sole responsibility for the library.In September 1994, police arrested Mr Arnold at his Milton Keynesoffice and copied files from his computer.

Mr Inman said the pictures downloaded by computer by Mr Arnoldto Mr Fellows were copies taken from Lolita, a pornographicmagazine which included indecent pictures of children. They senteach other coded E-mail messages to discuss the pictures. Mr Arnoldwas allowed to become a ticket holder to the library in return forthe photographs.

Mr Fellows sent Mr Arnold an E-mail in March 1994 afterreceiving copies of the photographs. "The messages make it clearwhat was being sent," Mr Inman said.

The case continues.