Former Child Dance Contest MC To Appear In Court Monday On Child Porn Charges
SANTA ANA (CBSLA.com) – A former children's dance contest MC is set to appear in federal District Court Monday to answer a child porn possession charge.
If found guilty at trial, Paul Michael Barbour, 33, of Long Beach, faces up to 10 years in federal prison.
The charges stem from the discovery of Barbour's digital video camera in a dressing room used by teenage girls participating in a dance contest at Cypress College, Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent Claude Arnold said.
Barbour worked for Cypress-based Kids Artistic Review, Arnold said.
He was originally arrested by Cypress Police on June 1.
The US Attorney's Office for the Central District of California filed a child pornography possession complaint against Barbour Thursday, and the Orange County District Attorney's office agreed to dismiss its charges against him to expedite the federal case, Arnold said.
Barbour was remanded to federal custody Friday afternoon, Arnold said.
As part of the initial investigation, a desktop computer from Barbour's home was seized and found to contain images and videos of child pornography, according to Arnold.
There was no evidence to suggest Barbour had produced any of that material, Arnold said.
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