FORT WORTH - A 17-year veteran of the Grapevine Police Department -- and single father of a child -- has been arrested on suspicion of possession of child pornography, accused of purchasing sexually explicit DVDs set over the Internet and having it mailed to his home in Crowley
Sgt. Philip Woolery, 46 is accused of receiving explicit material in the mail that contained "lewd and lascivious depictions of minors."Wearing purple shorts, a white 2002 TCU orientation T-shirt and a pair of loafers, Woolery said little in his initial appearance Wednesday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Cuerton. Woolery was asked to verify the spelling of his first name and to confirm that he couldn't afford his own attorney.Cuerton then appointed public defender William Hermesmeyer to represent him. Following the hearing, Hermesmeyer declined to comment.Woolery was arrested Tuesday by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which connected his home address and email to a January 2010 purchase of a DVD set that included images of child pornography.When authorities searched his house on Tuesday, they seized that DVD set and spoke to Woolery, who admitted that he ordered the DVDs, according to U.S. Attorney's Office press release."I spoke with Woolery, and he acknowledged ordering DVDs containing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct," said U.S. Postal Inspection Service special agent Brody Burns in a criminal complaint.The video showed three naked boys in an apartment, the complaint said."The boys remained naked throughout the video and were filmed doing flips onto an air-mattress in the middle of the room," the complaint said."The camera was positioned at the end of the air-mattress to capture the images of the boys' genitals ... as they do somersaults and flips toward the camera."In the complaint, Burns said the boys' actions "did not appear natural" and it appeared they were "prompted by the cameraman."The investigation began in October 2010 when inspectors received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that a company was offering child pornography videos for sale via the Internet.The company's business' records were seized, which included a customer database of orders. Woolery's home email address and email were connected to a Jan.1, 2010, purchase order.After his arrest, Woolery was placed on administrative leave Tuesday by Grapevine police, which will also conduct its own internal investigation, said police spokesman Sgt. Robert Eberling. Woolery works in the Uniform Operations Division.The U.S. Postal Inspection Service declined to comment, referring all inquiries to the U.S. attorney's office.Woolery was released from the Tarrant County Jail Wednesday morning to the custody of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.Child Protective Services spokeswoman Marissa Gonzales said CPS has taken custody of Woolery's child and is trying to place him with relatives."We would definitely interview the child and try to confirm that there was no abuse in the home," Gonzales said.If convicted, the penalty for receipt and attempted receipt of child pornography is not less than five years or more than 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release. The U.S. Attorney's office has 30 days to present the matter to a grand jury for indictment.Bill Hanna, 817-390-7698Twitter: @fwhannaHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
