Needham man accused of hiding child pornography on work computer; bail set at $25,000 cash

By Globe Staff

A Needham man today pleaded not guilty in a Boston courthouse to charges that he stored child pornography on the computer he used while working for a Brookline property management company.

Keith L. Millan was arraigned in West Roxbury Municipal Court today on five counts of possessing child pornography after “disturbing, violent images’’ were discovered on his computer by co-workers who then contacted Boston police, authorities said.

Bail was set at $25,000 cash for the 54-year-old Millan. Judge Mary Ann Driscoll also ordered the Department of Children and Families to decide whether it is appropriate for Millan to see his own children.

“These were disturbing, violent images,” Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a statement. “Even investigators familiar with cases of this nature found them extremely upsetting.”

According to court records, Millan worked for Leeder Management, which oversees apartment buildings in Jamaica Plain, Beacon Hill, Cambridge and Brookline.

Millan was fired when his employers found pornography on his laptop, an external hard drive and three compact discs, officials said today. As the company was reconfiguring the computer for use by another worker, the alleged child pornography images were found and company officials contacted police.

Howard Leeder, an owner of the Brookline property management company, declined comment today, saying authorities have asked him to remain silent about the case.

In his statement, Conley applauded Leeder for contacting authorities.

“His employers might have been tempted to wash their hands of him, turn a blind eye to this evidence, and move on.,’’ Conley said in the statement. “But these were photos and videos documenting child rape. Not getting involved just isn’t an option here.”

Millan is due back in court March 9.