Marc Collins-Rector
Marc Collins-Rector | |
|---|---|
 Collins-Rector's mugshot, taken in 2007 | |
| Born | Mark John Rector October 16, 1959 |
| Other names | Mark Collins Morgan Von Phoenix |
| Occupation | Businessman |
Marc John Collins-Rector (born October 16, 1959) is an American businessman and a convicted sex offender, known for founding Digital Entertainment Network, an online streaming video broadcaster and notable dot-com failure, as well as his associations with Hollywood and media figures. His child sexual abuse conviction is highlighted in the 2014 documentary An Open Secret.
Early life
Collins-Rector was born Mark John Rector. He changed his name to Marc Collins-Rector in 1998.[1][2]
In the early 1980s, Rector founded Telequest, a Florida-based telecommunications company. In 1984, he founded World TravelNet, a company which electronically coordinated cruises and tours; its affiliate, World ComNet, was floated on the Vancouver Stock Exchange in 1987. Its valuation briefly peaked at $100 million before increasing competition led to bankruptcy.[1] Rector later founded an early ISP; Concentric Network,[3] in 1991[4] along with partner Chad Shackley.[5]
DEN founding
Rector and Shackley sold Concentric in 1995 and, using money raised from the sale, as well as close to $100 million of investor and venture capital, formed an early Internet video media content delivery company, Digital Entertainment Network. Collins-Rector was the co-founder and chairman of DEN, which exhausted its funding following a failed IPO bid and collapsed amidst allegations of Collins-Rector having sexually abused boys, coercing them with drugs and guns.[6]
Child enticement conviction
_(cropped)_(cropped).jpg)
Running DEN out of a Los Angeles mansion, Collins-Rector and his business partners—Chad Shackley and Brock Pierce—hosted lavish parties, attended by Hollywood’s gay A-list.[7] It was at those parties Collins-Rector and others allegedly sexually assaulted teenage boys.[8]
In August 2000, a New Jersey federal grand jury indicted Collins-Rector on criminal charges that he had transported minors across state lines for the purpose of having sex with them.[9] After his indictment Collins-Rector fled to Spain together with Shackley and Pierce. Interpol arrested them in May 2002 in a villa in the south Spanish beach city of Marbella. Guns, machetes and child pornography were found in the house.[8]
Collins-Rector fought extradition proceedings for two years before returning to the United States, where he pleaded guilty to eight charges of child enticement and registered as a sex offender.[10] He admitted luring five minors across state lines for sexual purposes.[11] He received credit for time that he had served in a Spanish jail and was registered as a sex offender under a weekly supervision.[11]
In 2006, a U.S. District Court granted Collins-Rector special permission to go to the United Kingdom to receive treatment for a brain tumor.[12] He subsequently renounced his US citizenship and has never returned to the United States.[13] In 2007, he was photographed in London, and in 2008 was living in the Dominican Republic.[14] As of 2014[update], he lives in a "European port city" and uses the names "Mark Collins" and "Morgan Von Phoenix".[7]
Later career
News reports have stated that Collins-Rector was a silent partner in the MMORPG service company IGE, which was founded by ex-DEN VP Brock Pierce - who is now chairman of the Bitcoin Foundation.[6][15] IGE initially used an address in the city of Marbella, Spain, where Collins-Rector, Shackley and Pierce shared a villa until it was raided by Interpol in 2002.[16][17]
References
- ^ a b Menn, Joseph; Miller, Gregg (May 7, 2000). "How a Visionary Venture on the Web Unraveled". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Hall, Ellie; Medina Mora, Nicolás; Noriega, David (June 26, 2014). "Found: The Elusive Man At The Heart Of The Hollywood Sex Abuse Scandal". BuzzFeed News.
- ^ "Concentric Network Corp, SEC filings". SEC Info. Retrieved 2014-04-24.
- ^ Grover, Ronald; Siklos, Richard (1999-11-14). "Digital Entertainment Network: Startup or Non-Starter?". BusinessWeek. Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 2014-04-24.
- ^ Dibbell, Julian (2008-11-24). "The Decline and Fall of an Ultra-Rich Online Gaming Empire". Wired. Archived from the original on 2008-12-02. Retrieved 2014-04-24.
- ^ a b Gorenfeld, John; Runkle, Patrick (2007-11-05). "Fast Company". Radar Online. American Media. Archived from the original on 2008-01-17. Retrieved 2014-04-24.
- ^ a b "Found: The Elusive Man At The Heart Of The Hollywood Sex Abuse Scandal". Buzzfeed. 2014-06-26.
- ^ a b Abramovitch, Seth. "Elijah Wood Denies Personal Knowledge of Child Sex Abuse in Hollywood (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
- ^ "Mystery Man At Center Of Alleged Hollywood Sex Ring Has Vanished". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
- ^ Edwards, Jim (April 18, 2014). "Singer Lawsuit Is Tied To Marc Collins-Rector, Infamous Child Abuser Of The Dot-Com Boom". Business Insider. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
- ^ a b "Ex-DEN executive admits transporting minors for sex". USA Today. Gannett Company. Associated Press. 2004-06-14. Retrieved 2014-04-24.
- ^ "From The Magazine : Radar Online". 2008-04-18. Archived from the original on April 18, 2008. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
- ^ An Open Secret, 2014; Amy Berg.
- ^ Masters, Kim (April 30, 2014). "Bryan Singer Sex Abuse Case: The Troubling History Behind the Accusations". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 11 October 2017.
- ^ "bitcoinfoundation.org - Board Election Results Announcemen". bitcoinfoundation.org. 2014-05-09.
- ^ Farrell, Nick (2002-10-10). "Dotcom founders still in Spanish jail". VNU Business Press. Archived from the original on 2005-12-17. Retrieved 2014-04-24.
- ^ Lynch, Stephen (2003-11-11). "A DEN OF INIQUITY ; AFTER 3-YEAR EXILE, WEB EXEC FACES PERV CHARGES". New York Post. News Corporation. Retrieved 2014-04-24.