Frostproof, Fla. (970 WFLA)- Staff members at a health/medical facility in unincorporated Highlands County witnessed what appeared to be 63 year old Keith Garrard, who lives in Frostproof, but was at the facility receiving treatment, viewing images of child pornography on his laptop.
The staff members contacted the Highlands County Sheriff's Office. HCSO detectives arrived at the facility, and during an on-scene preview of his laptop, found child pornography.
Garrard admitted to possessing the images, and told detectives he has more pornography at home on his computer devices there, and that he has used his cell phone to take images of young children that he sees while out.
HCSO special victims unit detectives contacted PCSO, due to the fact that Garrard lives in unincorporated Polk County. PCSO detectives served a search warrant at Garrard's home, and located several electronic devices, which they seized for forensic analysis.
They also interviewed Garrard, who told them he has been viewing child pornography for approximately 20 years. He repeated what he told HCSO detectives, that he had taken photos of young girls with his cell phone.
Telling detectives he had printed several images, detectives found 68 printed images depicting children as young as 6 months old being sexually battered.
During the investigation, detectives interviewed more witnesses and discovered he sexually battered three different victims that he had access to when they were very young children.
Garrard confessed to committing the sexual abuse. He's charged with 68 counts possession of child pornography - enhanced
•2 counts sexual battery by a custodian on a victim under 12 years old
•2 counts sexual battery by a suspect over 18 on a victim under 12.
More charges are pending the forensic analysis of his electronic devices.
He is being held in the Polk County Jail under no bond for the capital felony charges, and $5,000 bond for each child pornography charge.
Credit: Polk County Sheriff's Office