28-year-old Christopher Barr was arrested on Jan. 27, Sheriff T.K. Waters said, as he resigned upon his arrest. He was hired by JSO four years ago.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville Sheriff’s officer was arrested on two counts of “offenses against computer users” last month, Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters announced in a press conference Wednesday.
Christopher Barr, 28, was arrested on Jan. 27, Waters said, as he resigned upon his arrest. He was hired four years ago by JSO, Waters said.
Barr was arrested for using protective databases to “access and disseminate law enforcement information to unauthorized individuals,” Waters said. The sheriff also said that there’s a “strong possibility” that Barr’s arrest is related to gang activity in Jacksonville.
According to Barr’s arrest warrant, it states that Barr “may have disseminated information from law enforcement databases on Sept. 19, 2023.” The information provided came from cell phone data which involved a text thread conversation, or group chat.
In the group chat, a “subject” in a separate investigation another law enforcement agency is working on, sent a message to multiple other individuals in the group chat, asking about details of a police interaction in Jacksonville, the warrant states. In the group chat, the subject was asking others to obtain information about when a particular individual was contacted by police. One of the messages from the subject in that chat indicated that he was going to reach out to Barr, the warrant indicates.
A screenshot from the subject’s phone showed the group chat in the background with a minimized FaceTime conversation window over it, the warrant states. The screenshot showed Barr in his JSO uniform and what appeared to be a JSO vehicle, according to the warrant. After the reference to Barr in the group chat, messages were sent with names of other witnesses involved in the separate law enforcement agency’s investigation. Research indicated that those names were only documented in the narrative of the JSO reports written for the separate case, the warrant states.
The warrant says that the phone number used in communication between the subject and Barr was Barr’s personal cell phone number he has registered with JSO.
Based on the circumstances of the incident, the warrant says a search of several JSO databases was conducted, as investigators found that Barr had searched the Agency Records Management System (ARMS), a “restricted information system.” The records show that Barr reviewed a report which contained details of the incident being sought by the subject in the group chat.
When asked who Barr gave the information to, Waters said he wouldn’t give specific names but, said they “were criminals in our community.”
“When a JSO employee has been arrested, no one is above the law and we’re not going to tolerate the violations of law by our agency,” Waters said. “And when a member of this agency violates the law, that person will be held accountable.”
Waters said he doesn’t suspect there to be more arrests “right now” related to Barr’s arrest.
Waters said he could not provide many details on the arrest due to an active investigation. This is the second arrest of a JSO employee in 2024, according to Waters.
