Dov Katz, head of the computer vision and machine learning group at Facebook-owned Oculus, appeared in court Thursday to plead not guilty to charges of attempted commercial sexual abuse of a minor.
Katz was arrested last month after he allegedly attempted to contact someone he believed to be a 15-year-old girl for sexual purposes, but it turned out to be an undercover police officer with the Tukwila Police Department, a city just south of Seattle.
Katz was arraigned Thursday, and he will next be in court in February to set a trial date. King County Superior Court Judge Julie Spector issued an order Thursday prohibiting Katz from having contact with any minors other than any biological children, or children of friends with a responsible adult around.
Katz, an Israeli citizen who resides in California, will be allowed to travel in the meantime, according to court documents. He’s posted bail of $125,000.
Katz’s attorneys from Seattle law firm Allen, Hansen, Maybrown & Offenbecher declined to comment on the case.
Katz allegedly responded to an online advertisement that offered sex in exchange for money, which was posted by the undercover officer. Katz allegedly arranged a meeting at the Embassy Suites in Tukwila, offering to pay $350 to have sex without a condom. When Katz arrived at the hotel with $600 in cash, he was arrested by police.
Upon his arrest, Katz told the officer that he was there to rescue the girl, and should have first called police, according to charging documents.
Facebook purchased Oculus — one of the leaders in virtual reality technology — for about $2 billion in cash and stock in 2014. Oculus operates a large engineering office in Seattle. Katz was profiled in a Times of Israel story in 2014 for the role he played in helping to develop the Oculus Rift headset.
