JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A former Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office emergency dispatcher who admitted to producing and distributing photos and a video showing him sexually abusing two young children was sentenced to 60 years in federal prison.
Scott Matthew Yotka, 48, was also ordered to serve a lifetime term of supervised release and register as a sex offender.
Yotka was arrested on September 17, 2021, and has been detained since that time. He pleaded guilty on May 13, 2022.
According to court documents, on Sept. 15, 2021, an FBI task force officer working undercover was messaging on a social media app with Yotka, who was using the name Scottnjax44. Prosecutors said he “discussed his ongoing sexual exploitation of children in graphic detail and “stated that he had access to two young children.”
“Yotka sent the undercover officer several photos and a video depicting two prepubescent children being sexually abused by Yotka,” prosecutors said.
Investigators said that the FBI traced the messages to Yotka’s residence and determined that the Scottnjax44 user account was also accessed from city offices in downtown Jacksonville. FBI agents also confirmed that Yotka was employed by JSO as a police emergency communications officer at the time.
On Sept. 16, 2021, the FBI obtained a federal search warrant for Yotka’s home on Bradley Road.
The search warrant was executed the next day, and investigators interviewed Yotka.
During the interview, according to prosecutors, Yotka admitted to “sending pornographic images of young children to another app user.” Prosecutors said he also admitted to taking photos of the children as he molested and sexually abused them. According to prosecutors, Yotka said, “I know what I did,” and he said, “I’m not proud of what I did.”
Prosecutors said an FBI forensic examiner recovered seven photos and a video depicting Yotka sexually abusing two children from Yotka’s cellphone.