School janitor pleads guilty to videotaping girls in locker room

Jason Goff is suspected of secretly recording students as they changed clothes

Courtroom sketch of Jason Goff in federal court by Steve Bridges

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A school janitor accused of secretly recording students in the Clay High School locker room has pleaded guilty to a federal charge of attempted production of child pornography.

Jason Goff, 44, faces between 15 and 30 years in federal prison. A sentencing date is not yet set.

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According to the plea agreement released by the U.S. Attorney’s Office on Wednesday, two 14-year-old students reported that they had seen what they believed was a camera lens concealed within a locked gym locker in the Clay High girls' locker room. When school administrators opened the locker they found a cell phone taped to the sidewall of the locker with the lens pointed out of a pre-fabricated hole.

Prosecutors said a forensic analysis of the phone yielded a 30-minute video of female students changing clothes. At the end of the video, the phone had been panned down, showing Goff’s school identification badge.

After Goff was arrested on Sept. 13, 2019, he admitted that he tried filming girls in the locker room at least three times from different vantage points.

Forensic analyses of other electronic devices belonging to Goff revealed additional images from the locker room and a collection of child pornography, including a video and images of adults sexually abusing children of various ages, including images of infants.

Goff was suspended by the Clay County School Board after his arrest, then submitted his resignation.

Clay County Schools Police Chief Kenneth Wagner noted that Goff typically worked after hours and was never around children. But as soon as the district learned something was going on, he said, the school took precautions to make sure students were kept safe.


About the Author:

Scott is a multi-Emmy Award Winning Anchor and Reporter, who also hosts the “Going Ringside With The Local Station” Podcast. Scott has been a journalist for 25 years, covering stories including six presidential elections, multiple space shuttle launches and dozens of high-profile murder trials.