St. Pete Officer Fired After Pleading Guilty To Stalking

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A St. Petersburg Police officer has been fired after pleading guilty to aggravated stalking.

Officer Iraj Karkevandian, 35, was arrested by the Hillsborough Sheriff's Office on Dec. 19 on charges of having sex with a minor. Karkevandian was suspended without pay following his arrest.

On Tuesday in the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Court in Hillsborough County, Karkevandian pleaded guilty to a third-degree felony charge of aggravated stalking. Following his guilty plea, St. Petersburg Police Chief Anthony Holloway terminated him.

Karkevandian was originally charged a second-degree felony of unlawful sexual activity with a minor after the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office received a report that Karkevandian had been communicating with a 17-year-old girl between 2013-14 through a mobile messenger application. Then, in October or November 2017, the sheriff's office said Karkevandian went to the victim's home where they engaged in sex.

Karkevandian was hired as a St. Petersburg Police officer on June 23, 2014.

See related story: St. Pete Police Officer Accused Of Having Sex With Minor