Child Porn Arrest In Michigan
In early April, we reported on Justin Berry, a 19-year-old who went to Capitol Hill to tell his story of becoming ensnared in a child porn business on the Web.
CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson was there as authorities staged a follow-up raid Tuesday in Detroit.
It was eight in the morning and Michigan State law enforcement agents were on the move, ready to arrest their target. And by 9 a.m., Edward Mulak, 23, was under arrest, charged with felony possession of child pornography.
CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports police say they seized – as evidence – some 48,000 photos on Mulak's computer hard drive, some allegedly of underage boys.
Even so, says Attkisson, Mulak isn't reported to be the main target of their investigation. Authorities are more interested in Mulak's roommate Ken Gourlay, who watched Mulak's arrest Tuesday from behind their door.
On April 4th, it was the same Ken Gourlay who took the Fifth Amendment at a Congressional hearing in which Justin Berry accused him of molestation and of sweeping him into the underworld of Internet child porn at age 13.
Berry told Congress he gave the Justice Department the goods on Gourlay and 1500 child porn clients last year.
And at the same time, Berry complained that he had "never been asked by law enforcement about any of the 1,500 names I provided them. Some of those who molested me, like Mr. Gourlay – who made all of this possible – are continuing to live their lives, unaware or uncaring about any government inquiry."
Berry subsequently gave up on the feds and turned to the state Attorney General in Michigan.
State officials - unlike federal investigators - moved quickly to search Gourlay's home, where they stumbled across Mulak's computer photos.
What about Gourlay? State investigators say in the months his case was allowed to languish, he had time to purge his computers and cover his tracks.
U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was asked if federal officials dropped the ball on this case.
"I am not going to talk specifically about that case because of the fact that it is in litigation," said Gonzales, "but we understand that we have an obligation to protect our children and the people in the department understand it is a priority for me."
Attkisson reports Michigan officials hope information gained from Tuesday's arrest will help them as the investigation of Berry's allegations – and Gourlay – continues.