Face Behind The Name: Meet Matthew Riskin Bean, Convicted 4chan Cyberstalker - Mootfag

From Meet Matthew Riskin Bean.

The 20-year-old New Jersey man was sentenced last week to 45 days in prison and five years probation for his role in a cyberbullying campaign carried out by denizens of 4chan.org, the infamous, and often malicious, online cabal.

Bean, who pleaded guilty in September to a felony stalking count, admitted e-mailing sexually explicit photos of a boy to administrators at the victim’s school. The minor had previously uploaded the naked photos to a chat room, and the 4chan mob set out to identify the teen and drive him to suicide. In his e-mail to school administrators, Bean masqueraded as the "concerned mother" of another boy at the school, stating that "this sort of behavior” was unacceptable.

In a reversal of roles, Bean’s photo was made public by the United States Marshals Service, which released this mug shot in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.

In court filings, Bean’s lawyer claimed that his client’s small stature--the felon is 5’ 4” and 110 lbs--could make him the target of jailhouse sexual abuse. Remarking that it is “important that people understand this is a crime," U.S. District Court Judge Anita Brody sentenced Bean to a nominal prison term, which he is scheduled to begin March 4.

4chan Linked To Federal Kiddie Porn Probe, Collin Campbell - Mootfag

NOVEMBER 3--After borrowing a fellow Navy man’s iPhone last month in order to play video games while aboard the USS Boxer, a sailor browsed through a folder titled “porn” and discovered his friend was in possession of illicit images of children, a discovery that has triggered a federal child porn investigation, records show.

When questioned by a Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent, Collin Campbell admitted to “downloading between 10-20 images of child pornography” that he claimed to have found on 4chan.org, the notorious image and message board. Campbell, pictured at right, is a Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class aboard the Boxer, a Navy warship currently docked in San Diego, but due for deployment in early-2011.

According to a U.S. District Court filing excerpted here, Campbell and fellow sailor William Vest were “in the Machinery Room, Cargo Weapons Elevator” on the Boxer on October 6 when Campbell “allowed Vest to use his personal cellular telephone, an iPhone 3G, in order to play video games while Campbell was also present playing video games on his iPod Touch.”

Vest, a Machinist’s Mate Fireman, told NCIS investigators that, after about 20-30 minutes playing video games, he “began opening pictures contained within the cellular telephone.” While browsing through the “porn” folder, Vest opened 5-6 images showing “what he believes to be child pornography.” Vest provided a detailed description of the images to Gerald Martin, who is identified in court records as the NCIS “Special Agent Afloat aboard the USS Boxer.”

Vest said that he initially considered speaking with Campbell about the photos, but “he thought that if he did, Campbell may dispose of the evidence or would get Vest in trouble since Campbell is of higher rank than him,” according to the court filing.

On October 15, NCIS agents seized “several items of electronic media…from Campbell’s person and berthing area” on the USS Boxer. During an interview with investigators, Campbell reportedly copped to possessing child porn and “alleged he obtained all those images from the website www.4chan.org.” He added that the images were on his iPhone and a personal computer in his home in National City, a San Diego suburb.

Campbell, who was previously stationed on the carrier USS Kitty Hawk, did not respond to a Facebook message seeking comment about the ongoing NCIS probe. It is unclear whether Campbell is aware of Vest’s cooperation with investigators, since Vest’s name is still included among the 58 friends listed on Campbell’s Facebook page. (4 pages)

[11/5 UPDATE: In an e-mail today, Ed Buice, an NCIS public affairs officer, confirmed the agency’s probe of Campbell, but said that no charges have been filed against the sailor, who is not in custody.]   

Turns Out 4chan Boards Not As Lawless As They Seem. Sarah Palin’s e-mail - Mootfag

Nearly overlooked during the recent criminal trial of the Tennessee man who hacked Sarah Palin’s e-mail account was the testimony--as a government witness--of the founder of 4chan.org, the anarchic message board.

Federal prosecutors put Christopher “Moot” Poole on the stand to identify 4chan records that linked David Kernell to the Palin hack. Poole, 22, had previously turned over to the FBI server logs and other records after being served with a search warrant.

Kernell, 22, initially uploaded images from Palin’s Yahoo account to 4chan’s notorious “/b/” board, and later posted there a step-by-step description of the September 2008 e-mail incursion. The 4chan records (and other electronic fingerprints) clearly linked the Palin hack to Kernell, who was convicted of two felony counts.

Poole’s testimony--which included quaint prosecution queries about b/tards, new fags, trolls, and getting Rickrolled--can be downloaded here (PDF). Denizens of /b/--where memes are born, cyberbullying campaigns are hatched, and child porn can sometimes be found--might be surprised to discover that 4chan isn’t as lawless as it seems.