A former private track coach was sentenced Monday to federal prison for transporting a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity during a 2017 college visit in Tulsa according to U.S. Attorney Trent Shores.
We first reported on this story in late March of this year.
U.S. District Judge Claire V. Eagan sentenced Kerry Sloan, 56, of Harker Heights, Texas to 180 months in prison. He will serve 10 years on supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to minors. Sloan will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.
“Young athletes look to their adult coaches not only for athletic instruction, but also for life advice as mentors. Today, former track coach Kerry Sloan was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison because he exploited that special coach-athlete relationship for his sexual gratification,” said U.S. Attorney Trent Shores. “It takes tremendous courage for victims to come forward to report these crimes. This young lady not only spoke up for herself but she also gave a voice to the past victims who were discovered during the investigation. I am extremely proud of her tenacity and strength.”
During his plea hearing, Sloan admitted that while he had told the teenage minor victim that he was driving her from Texas to Tulsa for meetings with college coaches, his true intent was to sexually assault her. He also admitted to ultimately sexually assaulting the victim during the car ride and raping her at a Tulsa hotel. After these incidents, Sloan then began driving the victim back to Texas but would not let her out of his car.
The victim was eventually able to contact her family, who called 911. Pittsburg County Sheriff's Deputies stopped the vehicle and rescued the victim. During the ensuing investigation, victims dating back to 1990 came forward to report similar incidents involving Sloan while he was serving in the U.S. Army.
Sloan was remanded into the custody of the U.S. Marshals until transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility.
The Tulsa Police Department, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Army Criminal Investigation Division, Pittsburg County Sheriff’s Office, and Killeen Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Nassar prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.
Led by United States Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
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