Ex-gymnastics coach listens to child sex abuse victims testify before 12-year prison sentence in Miami-Dade

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — A former gymnastics coach listened to two of his child sex abuse victims testify on Thursday in Miami-Dade County court before he was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

One of the victims in the case against Olea said in court that it had been 11 years since Oscar Olea sexually abused her after she met him at a gymnastics class.

“He ripped away my virginity, my purity, my innocence,” she said. “He took something sacred — I can never get back.”

Olea taught in Miami-Dade County, including at the Key Biscayne Community Church, the Key Biscayne Presbyterian School’s Crossbridge Church campus, and the Village of Key Biscayne Community Center.

The victims described their feelings of shame and anxiety. One said she opposed a plea deal that Olea had agreed to earlier this month.

“I want justice and the man that stole my childhood to be held fully accountable,” she said in court.

After a guilty plea on four charges — two counts of lewd and lascivious battery on minors and two counts of unlawful sexual activity with minors — the judge sentenced him to 12 years in prison and a 10-year sex offender probation.

“I think it’s a slap on the wrist,” a victim said in court.

Although prosecutors told the judge that they wanted to withdraw from the plea deal and proceed to trial, the judge moved forward as planned despite reservations.

“Maybe it is the best outcome,” one of the victims said after the hearing.

For the rest of his life, Olea will be a registered sex offender and will have to notify law enforcement where he lives and abide by restrictions banning his contact with minors.

Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge Alberto Milian praised the victims’ courage and strength.

“This is one of the toughest decisions I have had to make,” Milan said about allowing the plea deal.

After the hearing, the two victims embraced outside the courtroom.

“Now I can rip off this band-aid,” one of the victims said.

Miami-Dade County State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle released a statement after the hearing.

“Every victim of a sexual crime has their own never-ending sentence of pain and trauma, which no criminal court proceeding can ever end,” Fernandez Rundle wrote. “The prison sentence Oscar Olea received today for his crimes will never restore the sense of trust and innocence these women lost when they were sexually exploited by him.”

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