After detectives received complaints of a man contacting juvenile girls on Facebook with fake accounts, they found pornographic videos and images of approximately 450 children on his phone, some of them infants, officials stated in an affidavit.
Matthew Charles Grogul, 24, of the 1300 block of 39th Avenue, was arrested July 7 and charged with 30 counts of second-degree felony child pornography possession.
Indian River County Sheriff’s Office detectives went to Grogul’s home July 1 after receiving complaints from a Kansas police department, according to an arrest affidavit.
Shawnee Police Department reportedly contacted the agency and stated Grogul had “inappropriate online activity” with a 13-year-old.
Grogul told investigators during their July 1 interview he created an account using the name “Kathleen Greene” and “chatted with underage girls,” according to the report.
Grogul allegedly told them the girl had blocked his account and refused his attempts to communicate.
He told them he primarily used his Facebook application on his phone to talk with the juveniles.
According to the affidavit, when investigators asked to see his phone, Grogul said he had “some problems” on it and had accessed the dark web to get screenshots and recordings of dozens of images and videos and saved them on his phone.
Detectives obtained a warrant to search the phone and reported in the affidavit nearly 25 instances of alleged illicit videos and images.
One video reportedly showed achild around eight years old, detectives stated. One image reportedly showed an infant less than a year old.
Officials said in the report that more charges are expected.
Grogul reportedly told investigators he knew what he had done was illegal and he had had “a pornography addiction his whole life.”
Grogul was given a $300,000 bond and has an August 7 arraignment, according to court records.