Decorated St. Pete Police Officer Arrested On Child Porn Charges

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A decorated St. Petersburg Police office is facing federal charges after agents with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Department of Homeland Security discovered child pornography on his computer.

Matthew Enhoffer, 34, was arrested Thursday and charged by federal criminal complaint with distribution and possession of child pornography.

According to the complaint, an individual using the screen name “thehoff727” distributed child pornography on Snapchat. Further investigation revealed that the Internet Protocol address and subscriber information associated with that account was linked to the Enhoffer's home.

On Sept. 11, agents executed a search warrant at Enhoffer’s home and seized several electronic devices. An examination of Enhoffer’s cellphone revealed a collection of child pornography images and videos, including multiple images and videos involving children under the age of 12 in bondage, being raped and forced to perform sex acts.

If convicted, Enhoffer faces a minimum mandatory penalty of five years and up to 20 years in federal prison.

This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators.

Following his arrest, the St. Petersburg Police Department placed Enhoffer on administrative leave without pay. On Monday, St. Petersburg Police Chief Anthony Holloway fired him.

“It’s a shock for us at the police department," said Holloway.

Enhoffer received the department's Medal of Valor in 2015 for his involvement in a shootout with an armed 18-year-old. The teen shot at Enhoffer who returned fire and killed the teen.

“He was an officer that risked his life when it was needed but, at the same time, this allegation is very serious, so we’re looking into that," said Holloway.

A January 2015 photo on the St. Petersburg Police Facebook page shows Enhoffer being sworn in as a St. Petersburg police officer next to Officer Brent McComas. Enhoffer was previously an officer in St. Petersburg but left to become an officer in Virginia. He returned to the St. Petersburg Police Department in 2015.