Pornography alleged in MSC firing

A Mat-Su College employee has been terminated, partly as the result of allegedly downloading and possessing child pornography, College Director Paul Dauphinais said Wednesday.

The college declined to release the employee's name.

"This is a personnel matter," said Dauphinais, adding that the former employee was dismissed not only because of pornography allegations.

"It was because of a multitude of problems," the director said.

The college administration called University Police at the University of Alaska Anchorage on April 16 after a Mat-Su College worker reported another employee had downloaded child pornography.

College computers were shut down for a few hours in order to protect the school and the rights of the accused, Dauphinais told the Frontiersman.

University Police officers then obtained search warrants and came to the Mat-Su campus on April 17 to search desk-top equipment.

Dauphinais said at that time he wasn't aware of anyone at Mat-Su College who would have had legal access to child pornography for research or any other purpose.