GAINESVILLE, Fla. —
The Gainesville Police Department released Kitna’s arrest report Thursday, providing graphic details about the complaints filed against the now-suspended football player.
The investigation began in June with a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children into images of child pornography being shared on the social media platform Discord. The investigation led authorities to Kitna.
Kitna shared two images of a pubescent girl, police said in the report, adding that the phrase “so young junior” was written on both pictures. Kitna told a detective he thought they were legal because he found them online.
When police searched Kitna’s phone, they found three more images of two nude pubescent girls in the shower, according to the report. Those three images were saved to his cellphone last December, police said. The report did not estimate the ages of the girls.
Kenyon, the attorney, argued that Kitna should be released with no monetary bond and suggested that those three images could be considered child erotica instead of child porn.
Kitna also told police he had been in other messaging groups on at least one other social media platform that distributed similar material, according to the arrest report.
Discord had previously deactivated Kitna’s account because of a violation of the terms of service, police said.
“Discord has a zero-tolerance policy for child sexual abuse, which does not have a place on our platform or anywhere in society,” a Discord spokesperson said in a statement released to The Associated Press. “We work relentlessly to find and remove this abhorrent content and take action including banning the users responsible and engaging with the proper authorities.”
Two of the five arresting charges, which still need to be formalized by the state attorney’s office, are second-degree felonies that could result in a prison term of up to 15 years and a fine of up to $10,000. The other three are third-degree felonies.
Kitna also is being represented by Gainesville attorney Ron Kozlowski as well as noted Jacksonville attorney Hank Coxe, who has a history of taking on cases involving high-profile athletes.
Kitna appeared in four games as a redshirt freshman for the Gators this season. He completed 10 of his 14 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown.
Jon Kitna played 14 seasons in the NFL with Seattle, Cincinnati, Detroit and Dallas. He started 124 games and now is a high school coach in Burleson, just south of Fort Worth.
