WATERFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. – A Waterford Township man was arrested Wednesday after sending child pornography to an undercover FBI agent on a cellphone messaging device, according to court records.
On May 21, an undercover FBI employee began communicating on Kik with a username "mikenlaura1010." Kik is a messaging application for mobile devices that uses usernames as the basis for accounts and chats.
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The undercover agent said "mikenlaura1010" sent messages about sexually abusing the agent's purported minor daughter and about exchanging child pornography images.
On June 4, the user sent a message to the agent, saying, "A lot of people don't realize kids are sexual." The user then sent the agent a picture of three naked girls and a naked boy standing in a room, officials said.
The girls appeared to be about 10 years old, and the boy appeared to be about 8 years old, the agent said.
Officials said the user also asked crude questions about the agent's purported daughter and mentioned wanting to see her naked.
On June 6, the user told the agent that he had "some videos" that he could possibly trade, according to the agent. He sent a video that showed a girl, about 14 years old, performing a sexual act, officials said.
After sending the video, the user wrote to the agent, "Like?" When the agent didn't immediately respond, the user wrote, "Don't leave me hanging lol it's scary sending that."
In response to a subpoena, Kik Interactive Inc. provided account information for the username "mikenlaura1010." Officials traced the IP address to a home on Cloverton Drive in Waterford Township.
Police said the home belonged to Michael James Furlong.
Furlong, 37, was registered as a sex offender in 2009 on child pornography charges in Illinois, officials said.
A federal search warrant was executed Wednesday at Furlong's home, and he admitted to being the user "mikenlaura1010" on Kik, agents said.
He also admitted to exchanging child pornography files and downloading child pornography from the internet, according to authorities.
Furlong was taken into custody and charged with receipt and distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography.