Morris Magic Shop Owner Smashed USB Drives After Child Porn Confrontation: Docs

BUTLER, NJ — A former Morris County magic shop owner told police he has been interested in child pornography for more than 25 years and prefers "young ones," according to charging documents.

Officials charged Scott Morley, 48, with third-degree endangering the welfare of a child on May 15. He owned and performed at Butler-based Morley's Magic Theater, which appears to have shut down.

The investigation began in April when the Morris County Prosecutor's Office got an anonymous tip that Morley might be possessing child pornography, authorities said.

The tipster had found a pair of girl's underwear and a bag of data storage devices inside the Boonton Avenue magic shop and confronted Morley over them, prompting Morley to smash the devices with a hammer, court documents show.

Officers later found multiple sexual images involving pre-pubescent children on Morley's devices, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

The theater's website and Facebook page have been taken down, and Google now lists it as "permanently closed." Morley's also offered magic workshops and birthday parties, and performed at private events.

Morley's wife Britni was involved in the business, and also sits on the Butler Borough Council. As of press time, she has not responded to Patch's request for comment.

Court documents detail that the tipster had been painting inside the theater sometime between 2021 and 2022, and told police they had found "a bag of thumb drives and a pair of children's female underwear."

The person said they confronted Morley about the USB drives and the underwear, and Morley "took a hammer and destroyed them," according to the affidavit which officials filed in court.

After this person reported their allegations to the Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce on April 11, the Prosecutor's Office informed local police. A detective interviewed the witness on April 12, and also contacted Morley on that date.

Morley reportedly told the detective that his interest in child porn dated back to 1996, and said he had approximately 50 "questionable" images on his cell phone.

He also confirmed that he smashed the thumb drives that the tipster found and told the detective he preferred child pornography involving "young ones" because it was in his comfort zone, according to the affidavit.

Morley "stated on several occasions that the kids underwear are a part of his fantasy" and that he gets sexual gratification from the photos, court documents show.

Officials obtained a search warrant and found several images of pre-pubescent children engaged in sexual acts on his devices, per the affidavit.

The Prosecutor's Office said Morley has been released from jail on pre-trial supervision, with conditions including no unsupervised internet usage, no unsupervised contact with minors under the age of 18, and not being allowed to leave the state of New Jersey.

Patch has reached out to his defense attorney for comment.

Anyone with information about this investigation is asked to contact the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force of the Sex Crimes / Child Endangerment Unit of the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office at 973-285-6200.