NYC Hospitals Employee Used Work Computer To Download Child Porn, Prosecutors Say

DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — A city employee used his work computer to download and view images of child pornography, federal prosecutors said on Wednesday morning.

Daniel Sherlock, a consultant for the city's hospital network, was arrested and charged on Wednesday with possessing child porn. Sherlock, a resident of East Meadow on Long Island, had worked for the NYC Health and Hospitals system since June 2016, authorities said.

The federal prosecutor's office in Manhattan announced that an investigation with the city's Department of Investigation had revealed that Sherlock had downloaded at least 86 images of child porn on his work computer. Many of the images "depicted prepubescent children engaged in sexual activity with adults," according to a statement from U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan. Authorities also said Sherlock had installed a cleaning software in an attempt to wipe all traces of the pornography downloads clean. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

Investigators seized Sherlock's work computer in June, where they recovered evidence of the downloads as well as the cleaning software, prosecutors said. Sherlock, 28, was employed as a senior consultant for management information systems for the city's hospitals.

Sherlock was charged with one count of possessing child pornography. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. Patch was not immediately able to identify an attorney for Sherlock on Wednesday morning.

"DOI’s comprehensive investigation recovered dozens of these disturbing images, and even before today’s arrest DOI quickly put protocols in place to prevent this defendant from accessing City hospital computers and properties," Department of Investigation commissioner Mark Peters said in a statement. "This charged crime is serious and the security of City facilities of paramount importance – there can be no tolerance for this type of grotesque behavior"

"We have zero tolerance for this kind of criminal behavior," a spokesperson said in a statement. "NYC Health + Hospitals will continue to provide DOI and SDNY with the information needed to pursue this case."

Lead image via Shutterstock.