January 5, 2010
Media Contact: Sandi Copes
Phone: (850) 245-0150
CyberCrime Unit Arrests Santa Rosa County Man for Possession of Child Pornography
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced a Santa Rosa County man has been arrested on charges of possession of child pornography. Clarence W. Burnette was arrested by the Attorney General’s CyberCrime Unit with assistance from the U.S. Marshall’s task force, the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Burnette, 25, had applied for a position with the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and told deputies during his pre-employment polygraph test that he possessed images of child pornography. CyberCrime investigators interviewed Burnette at his Sellersville home and Burnette admitted to possessing images of child pornography. Investigators seized a computer and conducted forensic analysis to confirm child pornography was indeed on the computer.
Burnette was booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail and will be charged with one count of possession of child pornography, a third-degree felony. Additional charges may be added at a later date. He will be prosecuted by the State Attorney’s Office for the First Judicial Circuit.