What did Christopher Tyree do? Former Florida cop arrested over allegedly abusing young girls

Former Jacksonville Sheriff's Office deputy, Christopher Tyree was arrested after he was accused of allegedly s*xually assaulting a minor girl. The girl was reportedly between the ages of six and eight when the alleged assault took place. Law enforcement officials began an investigation into the case after the victim reported Christopher Tyree's abuse to Texas cops.

Tyree has, however, denied all the allegations and maintained his innocence. According to Law&Crime, the former deputy was arrested on August 25, and he is currently being held in jail on a bond of $1.5 million.

Trigger warning: The article contains references to child abuse. Readers' discretion is advised.

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Christopher Tyree, a former deputy at Jacksonville Sherrif's Office, allegedly touched two girls under the age of 10 inappropriately

A former police officer was taken into custody on Friday, August 25, after he was slapped with child s*xual assault charges. The girl who complained about Christopher Tyree's alleged assault first did so in April 2022.

The victim, who was a minor at the time, stated that she was a friend of Tyree's daughter, and they would often visit each other. She claimed that Tyree allegedly assaulted her on multiple occasions at his residence when she would change into a bathing suit there, as per Law&Crime.

According to the arrest affidavit, Tyree reportedly forced himself into the bedroom and corned her. He then forced her to establish an intimate relationship with him. The affidavit further included his daughter's statement, in which she said that he would "linger around" when she changed.

In June 2022, just two months after the victim reported Christopher Tyree, two more girls came forward and alleged that he touched them inappropriately. Authorities stated that one of the victims identified the former deputy in a lineup.

Tyree allegedly forced the minor to engage in an intimate relationship with him (Image via Twitter/@SamsonIsrael16)

Upon further investigation into Christopher Tyree, cops found out that he had engaged in inappropriate conversations with a 14-year-old girl from Volusia County, Florida. Tyree allegedly would often tell her that she was "beautiful" and that he loved her. In an interview with the cops in November 2022, Tyree, however, claimed that there was nothing serious going on between them apart from the comments from his end.

According to a police report:

"When questioned about the [Volusia County Sheriff’s Office] report, the defendant advised they (he and the juvenile) just shared some 'I love you's' and it was nothing serious."

Authorities then set up a phone call between one of the victims and the ex-deputy on June 27, 2022. They did this to see if the suspect admitted to any wrongdoing. However, he did not do so during the 12-minute-long call. According to the affidavit, Tyree said during the call:

"If I ever made you feel uncomfortable, I don’t know what else to say. I am so sorry. That was never any intention to make anybody feel uncomfortable. I know I would not just arbitrarily help a girl just change out of her clothes or any of that."

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The suspect pleaded not guilty to the charges filed against him

Tyree is now held on a $1.5 million bond (Image via Twitter/@pleasesaveour)

Despite all the allegations against him, Tyree maintained his innocence and denied all the accusations. As per Law&Crime, he has been charged with s*xual battery by a person 18 years of age on victim under 12 and lewd and lascivious m*lestation of a victim 12 years of age or younger by a person 18 years or older. Tyree has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Retired Jacksonville Sheriff's Office director, Tom Hackney spoke to WJXT about the suspect and revealed that he knew him well. He said that the arrest and the allegations against Christopher Tyree shocked him.

"Learning he had been arrested and the allegations made against him. This is somebody I worked closely with for several years. And to read that [arrest affidavit] is shocking," he said.

Although this is the first time Tyree has formally been charged with a crime, he faced several s*xual assault allegations in the past, even when he was working as a deputy at Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. He began working there in 1995 and left in 2012. A spokesperson for the sheriff's office refused to provide information regarding when the department became aware of the allegations against him.

First Coast News spoke to one of his victims' mother, who said that her daughter told her that Christopher Tyree had touched her inappropriately. She then allegedly took the matter to Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, but the authorities reportedly didn't consider the incident to be criminal in nature.