Chicago Sex Offender Arrested In Portland On Child Porn Charges

PORTLAND, OR — A Chicago sex offender wanted on federal child pornography charges was arrested Friday in Portland. Christopher B. Colon, who had been an operations manager at the former John Hancock Center, must remain in custody in Portland until he can be returned to Chicago in November.

A grand jury indicted Colon, 38, on three counts of child pornography, two of receiving and one of accessing. He had been part of an ongoing federal investigation that began in June 2017, and investigators had interviewed Colon and searched his Avondale home before he moved to Portland.

According to a 45-page federal search warrant that was unsealed in June 2018, Colon was accused of seeking out men who would allow their sons or nephews to engage in the convicted sex offender's sexual fantasies. He allegedly had used Craigslist last year to advertise for other men interested in child pornography and "taboo/perv" subjects, such as incest, while giving tours at 875 North Michigan Avenue's observatory.

RELATED: Hancock Center Sex Offender In Child Porn Investigation: Report

In 2015, Colon pleaded guilty to a single count of possessing child pornography involving a 9-year-old. He was sentenced to three years probation and credited with 91 days in jail. Colon also was ordered from going to and working at places mostly used by children without receiving a judge's approval.

In that case, federal investigators seized videos and other suspected child pornographic material from Colon's then-apartment in Lincoln Park in April 2011. He eventually was arrested by Chicago police in March 2014 and charged with 42 counts of child pornography and aggravated child pornography.

Because the case involved a minor, Colon is listed as a "sexual predator" on the Illinois Sex Offender Registry, and he must keep his information updated annually on that database for the rest of his life. His probation ended in January despite secretly being under investigation by federal authorities at the time.

Colon lost his job at the skyscraper over the summer following a report about the unsealed federal search warrant affidavit in the current investigation. He then moved to Portland, where he had registered as a sex offender in early October. While in Portland, Colon was unsuccessful getting work at Ronald McDonald House, which offers housing for parents while a child is hospitalized.

Patch editor Colin Miner contributed to this report.

Christopher B. Colon (Photo via Multnomah County Sheriff's Office)