JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A former Jacksonville Sheriff's Office emergency dispatcher has been indicted on charges of producing and distributing photos and a video depicting child sexual abuse.
A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging 47-year-old Scott Matthew Yotka with the crimes. He faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years, and up to 80 years, in federal prison and a potential life term of supervised release, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
FBI agents arrested Yotka at his home on Sept. 17 and is currently awaiting trial in custody.
Yotka, using the name "Scottnjax44" on a social media app, engaged in private conversations with an undercover FBI task force officer in Washington D.C. who was posing as the parent of a child on Sept. 15, according to court documents. The two discussed, in detail, the sexual exploitation of children, the release says.
Yotka stated that he was sexually active with two young children, both of whom were unable to talk, according to the release. He sent the undercover officer several photos and a video depicting two children being sexually abused, the release says.
During the conversation, Yotka also said that he was employed as an "emergency dispatcher" and worked "12-hour shifts," the release says. The FBI traced the messages to Yotka's home in Jacksonville and determined that the same "Scottnjax44" user account was also accessed from the City of Jacksonville facility at the Ed Ball Building in Downtown Jacksonville, according to the release.
The FBI coordinated with JSO and confirmed Yotka was employed as a Police Emergency Communications Officer and that he routinely worked a 12-hour night shift, the release says. JSO and the FBI executed a federal search warrant at Yotka's home and arrested him on the 17th. Following his arrest, Yotka resigned his position with JSO, the release says.
The case was investigated as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Anyone with information regarding this investigation should contact the FBI Jacksonville office at 904-248-7000.
