Lawrence Lab researcher allegedly downloaded child porn for 30 years, avoided charges until this week

[Jim Burton]

https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2025/12/10 ... this-week/

He’s also allegedly been downloading child sexual abuse material for decades, onto encrypted hard drives on his home and work computers, apparently avoiding detection by either employers or law enforcement until this year.

Last September, the California Highway Patrol raided Kolbe’s Albany home, the culmination of an investigation that started in January 2024 with a look into secret peer-to-peer networks where child pornography was being shared.

As police were seizing his electronic devices, Kolbe allegedly admitted that he’d been downloading child sexual abuse material for 30 years. He told police he had been storing it on encrypted devices, and there was more to be found at his Berkeley work station, where he researches electronic engineering and condensed matter physics, according to court records.