ST. GEORGE — A St. George man was arrested last week after internet crime task force agents reportedly found images depicting the sexual abuse of children during a search.
Matthew Christian Radcliffe, 46, was arrested on June 28 and booked into Purgatory Correctional Facility facing two second-degree felony counts of sexual exploitation of a minor.
This is the second such arrest for the suspect following a federal conviction in 2009 that landed him in federal prison for more than five years.
Radcliffe’s arrest stems from an investigation by the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, headed by the Utah Attorney General’s Office, which includes officers throughout Washington County, including St. George Police Department detectives.
The investigation involved child sexual abuse material distributed online. Agents identified the IP address and ISP subscriber information leading to a residence in Washington County.
A digital analysis revealed a file that contained images depicting the sexual abuse and rape of prepubescent children downloaded by the same subscriber in April. Further investigation indicated the user was living at a residence in Washington County and identified Radcliffe as the individual suspected of downloading the images.
Agents matched other identifying information that connected Radcliffe to the transfer of an illicit video they said was more than 50 minutes long.
On the morning of June 28, after agents confirmed that Radcliffe resided at the address in St. George and internet crimes task force agents arrived at the suspect’s home to execute a search warrant.
While speaking to police, the suspect reportedly told officers he has a bachelor’s degree in computer science. At one point in his working career, he told police he had worked with computer networks.
He confirmed the ISP address used at his residence and it matched IP address used to transfer child sexual abuse material, police say.
Following the search, Radcliffe was arrested and transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility and booked into jail facing two second-degree felony counts of sexual exploitation of a minor.
The agent noted that Radcliffe had a prior case involving the possession of child sexual abuse material that ended in a federal conviction in 2009.
In that case, the defendant was convicted of one count of possession of child pornography and was sentenced to serve 68 months in federal prison. The judge also ordered 10 years of post-prison supervision upon his release and comply with all sex-offender requirements, including registering as a sex offender, which is still active.
Government agents seized three computers and a thumb drive during the federal investigation.
A review of federal records indicates Radcliffe was released in June 2015 and ordered to remain on federal supervision for 10 years. However, he was terminated “successfully” from federal parole in November 2022, more than two years early.
According to the order for early termination, the federal probation officer noted that Radcliffe “has complied with the rules of regulations of supervised release and is no longer in need of supervision.”
Roughly five months later, the defendant would become the focus of the internet crimes against children investigation that led to his arrest. No federal parole violation will be filed in connection with the recent arrest, as would have been the case had the 10-year supervision requirement remained in place.
Agents requested that Radcliffe be held without bail, which the judge approved. He remains in custody on a no-bail hold.
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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