Four felony counts were filed February 16 against a convicted child molester who allegedly used computers at the Los Angeles Public Library to distribute child pornography and send e-mail to members of a sex club made up of pedophiles. As a result of a two-month police sting operation, Jack Hornbeck, 45, was arrested in Van Nuys, California, where he went in expectation of having sex with children.
Police Detective Lisa Miranda told the February 12 Los Angeles Times that Hornbeck would go to the Central Library “as soon as it opened up and signed up to use each computer on each floor. From there he maintained his Web site, while e-mailing and communicating with members of his club. He sent me as many as 300 images of child pornography.”
LAPL spokesman Peter Persic stated that library officials, but not staff, had cooperated with police in the sting. “Fortunately this sort of incident is isolated,” he said. “But we take it very seriously.”
Posted February 22, 1999.