Sarasota, Lakewood Ranch doctor charged with soliciting porn from minor

A Sarasota doctor who lives in Lakewood Ranch has been arrested after authorities say he solicited nude photos and sent photos of himself to a 14-year-old girl in Utah.

The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office arrested Pete Supan, 38, on Jan. 9 after he was indicted on federal charges two days earlier, according to a news release. 

In October, detectives in the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children Unit received a cyber tip reporting suspicious chats between a suspect from Bradenton and a victim residing in Utah over the social media platform Reddit. 

During the chat, the suspect, who portrayed himself as a 19-year-old male, solicited a 14-year-old female for nude images. The chat also contained verbiage of sex acts that the suspect would perform on the juvenile. 

Detectives identified Supan, who practiced internal medicine in Sarasota, and a search warrant was obtained for his home on Spring Gate Trail in Lakewood Ranch, the release said. 

The Sheriff’s Office says Supan was interviewed and admitted to chatting with the victim and soliciting explicit images from her. Investigators also say he admitted to sending the victim explicit photos of himself.

During the search, multiple devices were seized to be examined. Detectives say Supan had no access to children, and he had not traveled to meet any minors, limiting his activity to online correspondence. 

Detectives were able to locate the alleged victim and learned that authorities in that jurisdiction were already investigating the incident and had collected enough evidence to take the case to the federal courts. 

Supan has been charged with one count of transmission of harmful materials and one count of production of Child Sexual Abuse Material. After his arrest, he was transferred to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service in Tampa.