Orem
photographer in federal court on porn charges
TARA DUGGAN and
CALEB WARNOCK
August 15
SALT LAKE CITY -- An Orem photographer was detained in federal court Wednesday
afternoon on charges of child pornography, as the number of families concerned
their children may have been exploited by the man continues to grow.
Joseph Paul Durborow was arrested Saturday for sexual exploitation of children
and the receipt and distribution of child pornography. He will remain in custody
and is expected to go before a grand jury next Wednesday.
According to court documents, Durborow ran a photography business called Joseph
Paul Photography from his home at 535 N. 1025 West in Orem. Federal agents are
investigating him as part of an international pornography ring.
The federal complaint says Durborow admitted to the crimes and confirmed one of
the girls in the pornographic photos was his foster daughter, who was 10 or 11
at the time. Durborow's court-appointed attorney, Wendy Lewis, could not be
reached for comment Wednesday evening.
Federal officials say Durborow and his wife have 10 foster children, ages 8-14.
State welfare officials are now investigating the case.
Meanwhile, other families concerned their children may also be victims have
started to come forward, said Melodie Rydalch, spokeswoman for the U.S.
Attorney's Office.
"We have calls from a lot of parents," Rydalch said. "There are
volumes of images and the agents are going through all of those and then trying
to work with those families to see if they can match what is on the disks and
the hard drive and find out who these people are."
Orem police Lt. Doug Edwards said his office received two dozen calls from
concerned parents Tuesday.
Detectives will now take statements, get pictures of the children and then
attempt to match those with photos taken when a search warrant was issued on
Durborow's home early Saturday morning, netting three computers, three digital
cameras and numerous disks, videotapes and files.
During a police interview, Durborow told officers he keeps some of his
pornography collection in a storage facility in American Fork.
A large collection of computers, disks and videotapes were recovered from that
facility, according to Rydalch.
"Agents are reviewing the material and going through it now," she
said.
Durborow's photographs were discovered as part of an international pornography
sting known as "Operation Hamlet." Ten Europeans and 10 America Burley
man among 20 indicted globally in child porn ring
Photographer already has pleaded guilty in Idaho child sex abuse case .
