Florence, Arizona — A former foster father whose family left Arizona after contact with the state’s Department of Child Safety is now in federal custody, accused of transporting a minor across state lines for sexual activity, FOX 10 Phoenix reported Sept. 3. The accuser is his former foster daughter, who says the abuse began at age 13 in the family’s Florence home.
The federal case
Brian Griffeth was arrested in Arizona in August, according to FOX 10. An FBI probable cause statement alleges he recorded his former foster daughter, identified in court papers as Jane Doe, on an iPad. She told investigators she was “too scared of Brian to refuse.”
Doe, now 18, says the abuse continued after the family moved to Florida and did not stop until she was removed from the home in July 2025. Griffeth has denied the child pornography allegations, according to FOX 10. His federal defender did not respond to the station’s request for comment. A hearing was set for Sept. 11.
A Florida case that was dropped
In July 2025, deputies and Florida Department of Children and Families workers went to the Griffeths’ home in Fort White, in Columbia County, with a court order and took nine children into protective custody. The case began after a child was found with a Taser at a church camp and a staff member reported the family, the station reported.
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Brian Griffeth, his wife Jill and two adult children were arrested on child abuse charges at the time. WTOC reported then that one child told investigators the mother would “press plywood on their chest and spray vinegar in their face,” quoting the arrest report. State Attorney John Durrett later declined to prosecute, calling the aggravated abuse evidence weak, and the charges were dropped. FBI agents in Jacksonville kept investigating while the state case was pending.
a series of blame shifting and finger pointing by DCF employees
State Attorney John Durrett, describing depositions in the state case, FOX 10 Phoenix
The Arizona record
Court records cited by FOX 10 show Arizona DCS contacted Brian and Jill Griffeth after one of their sons was found living in a backyard shed. The family sold its Arizona home in January 2024 and moved to Florida. That son told authorities he believed the move was meant to avoid “DCS scrutiny,” according to the records.
Durrett said Arizona DCS was “radio silent” when his office asked for information about the family. The agency declined to comment to FOX 10, citing confidentiality laws.
Where oversight broke down
Arizona placed a foster child in the Griffeth home and kept her there for years. When the agency’s own contact with the family raised alarms, the family sold the house and crossed state lines with the children, including a foster child who remained in the home until Florida removed her. Arizona then would not share what it knew with the Florida prosecutor handling the case. Confidentiality laws are supposed to protect children. Here they shielded the agency from explaining its own decisions.
Families who raise concerns about a foster or adoptive home often hit the same wall of secrecy. FAN’s guide to filing a CPS complaint explains how to create a record that cannot be quietly closed.
Key facts
- Brian Griffeth is in federal custody, accused of transporting a minor across state lines for sexual activity.
- The accuser, a former foster daughter now 18, says abuse began at 13 in Florence, Arizona.
- Florida DCF and deputies removed nine children from the family’s Fort White home in July 2025.
- State child abuse charges against four family members were dropped after the state attorney declined to prosecute.
- The family moved from Arizona in early 2024 after Arizona DCS contact over a son living in a shed, records say.
- Arizona DCS declined to comment and, per the Florida prosecutor, did not answer his requests for information.
- Griffeth denies the allegations; he has not been convicted.
Sources
- FOX 10 Phoenix — Records: Florida foster dad accused of child sexual abuse has history with Arizona DCS (2026-09-03)
- FOX 13 Tampa Bay — Records: Florida foster dad accused of child sexual abuse has history with Arizona DCS (2026-09-03)
- WTOC — Family of 4 accused of caging up and sexually abusing adopted, foster children (2025-07-25)
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