Porn Scandal: Obama's Top HHS Cyber Security Chief Convicted On Child Pornography Charges

The former cyber security chief at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has been convicted on several counts of child pornography by a federal jury in the District of Nebraska on Tuesday, New York Daily News reported. Charged and held without bail since May 2013, he was granted top clearance at HHS, the same agency in charge of administering Obamacare, up until January 2014.

Timothy DeFoggi, 56, was found guilty of engaging in a child exploitation enterprise, conspiracy to advertise and distribute child pornography, and accessing a computer with intent to view child pornography in connection with his membership on a child pornography website, according to court documents. He faces up to life in prison when he's sentenced Nov. 7.

Agents arrested DeFoggi at his Maryland home on the basis of an apparent "mental condition" that could impact his ability to appear in court, according to his detention order. "When they entered his residence, DeFoggi ran up a floor, grabbed his laptop computer and had to be physically separated from it. The agents found the laptop to be actively downloading a video of child pornography," Pink Cross Foundation reported. "One of the other items found in his home was an order of protection issued in the state of New Mexico in October 2010. The order required the defendant to stay away from an 11-year-old boy, because the guardian had perceived actions believed to be grooming for sexual purposes."

In 2012, DeFoggi was the sixth individual to be arrested as part of an ongoing FBI investigation targeting three child pornography websites.

"Evidence presented at trial indicated that DeFoggi registered as a website member on March 2, 2012, and maintained his membership for nine months, at which point the website was taken down by the FBI. His account described himself as 'having many perversions,' asking others to contact him for 'fantasy chats,'" according to PCF.

Specifically, his activities on the site included accessing child pornography and expressing sexual fantasies - including raping and murdering children - in his communication with other site members, according to NYDN.

"DeFoggi even suggested meeting one member in person to fulfill their mutual fantasies to violently rape and murder children," the Department of Justice said of DeFoggi's activities.

DeFoggi began work at the department in 2008 as a supervisory IT specialist at the Indian Health Service. He then moved to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration, where he worked as lead IT specialist until January 2014, HHS said in a statement.

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