UPDATE @ 10 p.m.:
Former Southwest Soccer Club president and coach Justin K. Smith was released Friday evening from the Montgomery County Jail. There are no charges filed against him.
EARLIER REPORT
A former Southwest Soccer Club president and coach remained in jail Friday awaiting official charges after the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said the man had a relationship with a female player under age 16.
Sheriff Phil Plummer said he is concerned by the number of sexual misconduct cases involving children and adults in authority positions and will devote the efforts of a detective to focus on these cases.
“Keep an eye on your children, because unfortunately we’re seeing a lot of situations where adults are preying on juveniles in this community,” Plummer said. “It’s time this stops in this community. So we’re going to throw some resources at this and really take a swing at it.”
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Plummer asked parents with children on the soccer team to “please contact us” if they suspect their child might also be a victim.
“We also ask parents, watch your children’s social media, because a lot of this was also conducted over social media, cell phones and pictures, text messages,” Plummer said.
The victim’s parents alerted authorities to the relationship after they found communication between the girl and Smith on her phone and social media, Plummer said. The relationship was said to have lasted about five months, Plummer said.
The coach, Justin K. Smith, 41, was arrested early Wednesday evening at his Germantown home and later booked on suspicion of sexual battery, jail records show. Smith was previously listed as a coach and president of the youth soccer club for boys and girls for 2017-18. A person who answered the door at his residence Friday declined comment.
The youth soccer club’s board released a statement about the allegations, calling them a “great concern.”
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“We are cooperating fully with law enforcement officials and will have additional information to share as allowed and as it becomes available,” the club said. “We regret the pain some individuals may be experiencing as a result of the recent allegations made regarding the conduct of a former coach and board member… ”
Plummer also asked parents from the WTRC Sharks swim team to come forward if they believe their child may have been violated after a coach for the team, based out of the Washington Township Recreation Center, last month was accused of inappropriately touching a minor female swimmer during multiple practices, according to court records.
John “Jay” Smith, 37, is charged with sexual imposition, disorderly conduct and phone threats related to incidents reported to have happened between Feb. 16 and March 2, court records show. The newspaper attempted to reach Smith’s attorney at the time of the arrest.
Jay Smith is said to have had a one-on-one practice with the minor victim on Feb. 16 and "asked the minor victim to meet him in the equipment room so he could stretch her out," a statement of facts filed in Kettering Municipal Court read.
A second similar incident was reported, involving the same victim, on Feb. 27, except court records showed Jay Smith was accused of being “more invasive.”
Nationally, the case of former Michigan State University doctor Larry Nassar, who was accused of sexually abusing more than 265 people during his time as a doctor treating young gymnasts, cast a harsh spotlight on criminal sexual conduct involving young athletes. Nassar’s prison sentences range from 40 to 175 years in prison.
Ohio State University last month said it notified law enforcement about allegations of sexual misconduct against Dr. Richard Strauss, a former wrestling team doctor who died in 2005. The allegations include incidents that may have occurred from the mid-70s through the late 90s, the university said.
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Staff Writers Max Filby and Laura A. Bischoff contributed reporting.