A man has been tricked into handing himself into police for child pornography offences after a computer virus told him the FBI was investigating him.
Jay Matthew Riley, 21, of Woodmark, Virginia, freaked out when an “FBI Warning” message appeared on his computer while he was allegedly looking at child pornography at home.
The message, which was a virus, told Mr Riley he had to either pay a fine or would be subject to a criminal investigation, Prince William County Police Department said in a statement.
Instead, Mr Riley took himself and his computer down to the police station, to ask if there were any warrants on his file for child pornography.
Police found inappropriate messages and photos of girls as young as 13 on the computer.
Mr Riley has been charged with five sexual offences related to the content found on his computer.
This story originally appeared on news.com.au.