The owner of a popular Orlando bar faces serious charges, including child pornography and attempted sexual abuse of minors
They got arrested back in January after a grand jury handed down the indictment in December. Kowalczyk faces multiple counts, including receiving and possessing child pornography. Patrick is also in hot water for distributing it.
Kowalczyk isn’t just running Southern Nights; he also owns other bars in Orlando. His lawyer says the bars will stay open, but Kowalczyk will step back to focus on his defense. He insists he’s innocent and believes the legal system will clear his name.
The investigation kicked off in January 2023 when cops were looking into another suspect. They found messages between that suspect and Kowalczyk on Telegram, where they discussed some really disturbing stuff. Both admitted to past sexual encounters with minors, and the suspect even sent Kowalczyk videos of child pornography.
Cops traced Kowalczyk through Cash App payments and raided his home, seizing electronic devices. They found evidence of child exploitation on those devices. Kowalczyk reportedly admitted to receiving child pornography, and his iPhone had dozens of images and videos involving minors.
Messages between him and Patrick revealed their plans to have sex with minors, including a trip to Key West in 2020 where they met a minor through Grindr. They even shared child sexual abuse material with each other. Patrick, who worked as a teacher, followed Kowalczyk’s instructions on how to entice the minor. It’s a shocking situation that has left many in the community reeling.
