Wheaton College employee charged with having child porn

A Wheaton College employee is banned from campus and on unpaid leave after he was charged with having child pornography on his personal computer.

Benjamin Felker, 28, of the 1000 block of Briarbrook Drive, is being held on $250,000 bail. He is charged with four counts of possession of child pornography after police searched his home Tuesday evening, prosecutors said. Felker is a former geology department lab associate at the college.

Prosecutors said officers found "at least four videos and multiple images depicting child pornography" on his computer in his home.

"The charges against (Felker) are absolutely disgusting and will be met with the full force of the law," DuPage County state's Attorney Robert Berlin said in a written statement.

Wheaton College President Philip Ryken also issued a written release in which he said he was disturbed to learn of "these troubling charges."

"As a Christian community, Wheaton College fundamentally opposes the production and use of pornography, especially child pornography, which by its very nature exploits and victimizes the most vulnerable," Ryken wrote, noting Felker's leave and banishment from campus.

His next court appearance is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 4, in front of Judge Robert Miller.