Muskogee Firefighter Arrested On Child Pornography Complaints

A Muskogee man was arrested Friday by Muskogee law enforcement on complaints of publication and distribution of child pornography, police said. 

Zackery Perry, a Muskogee firefighter, was arrested after Muskogee Police and investigators from the Muskogee County Sheriff's Office served a search warrant in relation to the crimes, Muskogee police stated in a news release. 

Police said Perry allegedly sent messages and videos of what investigators believe to be child pornography. 

The reporting person contacted the Muskogee County Sheriff’s Office after Perry allegedly asked for photographs of her child, police said. 

The MCSO investigators then contacted investigators with Muskogee Police, and based on the evidence obtained from the previous messages between Perry and the woman, investigators obtained an arrest warrant for Perry and a search warrant for his phone and any other electronic communication devices, MPD said. 

The woman and Perry exchanged pictures until she reported he asked for a picture of her child.

"As soon as he started sending those messages, she contacted the Sheriff's Office," said Officer Lincoln Anderson, Muskogee Police.

"Once things started getting a little awkward, she contacted the Sheriff's Office and we conducted a joint investigation."

MPD said the investigation is ongoing. 

Perry is a veteran Muskogee firefighter who in previous news reports was profiled as a paramedic and member of the department educational clowns.

MPD said its concern is the ever increasing availability of apps and social media chat rooms that are being used by perpetrators to distribute or solicit child pornography. 

"Parents need to be extremely aware of what is on their children’s phones, laptops or any other communication device that they may have," Muskogee police said.

"While in this situation, the suspect was not directly contacting a child, the probability of that occurring is extremely high unless parents keep a watchful eye on their children’s social media and any apps that can be used to chat, send pictures or videos."

Police said that includes apps and communication platforms on gaming systems such as Playstations and XBOXs.

"Parents of teens and younger kids have got to pay attention to what they have on their phones and how they're communicating with the stuff that's on their phones," said Officer Lincoln Anderson, MPD.

The Muskogee Fire Department placed Perry on administrative leave with pay pending any further legal proceedings. His bond is set at $25,000.