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Fort Lauderdale firefighter arrested on 11 child porn charges

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Police have arrested a driver and engineer for Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue after federal agents found child pornography in his home.

On Thursday, Sunrise Police and the FBI went to the home of 43-year-old Patrick Ryan with a search warrant.

Ryan, a member of Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue since 2009, works out of several FLFR stations. Officials said had been scheduled to work at Station 16 in Wilton Manors on Thursday but was not on duty at the time of his arrest.

He was taken into custody after, investigators said, agents found images of child porn on his devices. They have not elaborated further on the content they found.

In total, Ryan faces 11 charges related to child porn.

FLFR officials said he has been placed on administrative leave. They issued a statement that reads, “Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue was notified early Thursday morning, that an employee had been arrested on child pornography charges. The employee was immediately placed on administrative leave and appropriate discipline will be taken pending the criminal investigation. For information regarding the investigation, please contact the arresting agency, City of Sunrise Police. It is important to know that the accused actions of this single employee in no way represent the values or integrity of the more than 400 men and women of Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue.”

Ryan is being held without bond at the Broward County Main Jail in Fort Lauderdale.