MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — A former gymnastics coach listened to child sex abuse victims testify on Thursday in Miami-Dade County court before he was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Three victims testified against Oscar Olea. One said she had endured 11 years of shame and anxiety since the child sex abuse. Another read her statement, her hands shaking.
“He ripped away my virginity, my purity, my innocence,” she said. “He took something sacred -- I can never get back.”
Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge Alberto Milian praised the victims for their courage and strength. Tears welled up in his eyes during their testimony.
“I want justice and the man that stole my childhood to be held fully accountable,” a victim said in court.
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.
“This is one of the toughest decisions I have had to make,” Milan said about allowing a plea deal.
Earlier this month Olea told Milian in court that he had agreed to a plea deal. Not all of the victims agreed to it, so prosecutors told Milian that they wanted to withdraw from the plea deal and proceed to trial and the defense said they had already agreed to the deal.
“My heart goes out to the victims. Justice is very imperfect, and this is one of the great examples,” Milian said while reading a statement 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 -- Milian sentenced Olea 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.
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. He also has to stay away from Key Biscayne.
“Maybe it is the best outcome,” one of the victims said after the hearing.
Two victims embraced outside the courtroom after the hearing.
“Now I can rip off this band-aid,” one of them 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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