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Tampa man who appeared as subject matter expert in court reportedly lied under oath

Posted at 12:51 PM, Sep 22, 2016
and last updated 2016-09-22 12:55:14-04

A Tampa man has been arrested after he reportedly lied about his certifications, education, and level of expertise when he appeared as a subject matter expert defense witness during five jury trials/depositions in the 10th Judicial Circuit. 

Polk County deputies say Chester Kwitowski, 57, of Tampa, provided sworn testimony that he has formal education and certifications including:

  • A Master's Degree from USF in Computer Science and Engineering
  • Secret and Top Secret Clearance from the Federal Government
  • An Officer in the U.S. Air Force
  • Multiple computer forensics certifications from different software companies

Kwitowski was an expert defense witness during five sexual battery on a minor and/or possession of child pornography jury trials/depositions. 

Deputies determined that Kwitowski's claims were false and arrested him on Thursday, September 22. 

Kwitowski has a criminal past that includes arrests in 2001, 2003 and 2007. In 2001 he was arrested for battery, domestic violence. In 2003 he was arrested for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. In 2007 he was arrested for false reports of commission of crime. 

ABC Action News is looking into the status of the cases that Kwitowski was involved in. Sheriff Grady Judd will hold a news conference at 2 p.m. on Thursday to update the investigation.