Detectives: Hillsborough child porn investigation yields four arrests
TAMPA -- Four Hillsborough County men have been arrested in an ongoing investigation into child pornography that began one month ago, detectives say.
The men: Adam Dinofsky, 44, of Valrico; Mark Lawton, 53, of Palm River; Randall Baxley, 41, of Valrico; and Clifton Morthershed, 41, of Tampa, were all arrested by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and Florida Attorney General’s Predator Cyber Task Force in the past week.
Detectives served search warrants on each of the men and found video clips featuring children ages 1 to 12, according to a news release from the sheriff's office. The video clips seized were being distributed, and depict children in various stages of sexual exploitation by adults and others. Some show children in bondage and bestiality, deputies said.
Dinofsky, a Hillsborough County firefighter and paramedic, was the first arrested when detectives came to his home with a warrant Tuesday after a tipster told them they may find child pornography there. He was charged with five counts of possessing child pornography, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia and has been released on $11,000 bail.
Lawton was charged with 42 counts of possession of child pornography and manfacture of marijuana. He is being held with bail set at $86,000.
Baxley, an equipment operator for a land clearing company, is charged with 53 counts of possessing child pornography. According to arrest records, he has been in the county jail almost annually since 1997, and this time he is being held without bail.
And Mothershed, a computer technician, is charged with 100 counts of possession of child pornography and is being held with bail set at $10,000.
Detectives say the investigation is on-going.
--Robbyn Mitchell, Times staff writer
