Youth Coach Arrested For Sexual Contact With Child: Police

MOUNT VERNON, NY — A youth baseball coach has been arrested on allegations of sexual contact with a juvenile.

On Monday, Mount Vernon police were contacted about allegations that the youth baseball coach was engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a former player. The mother of the alleged victim told cops that she found text messages between her child and the coach, which included sexually explicit messages and photographs.

Detectives learned that the coach had subjected the victim to sexual contact on more than one occasion, according to a statement released by Mount Vernon officials.

On Tuesday, Mount Vernon Police Department detectives arrested Robert Pope. The 30-year-old was later charged with counts of a felony criminal sex act in connection with the allegations, according to city officials. He was scheduled to be arraigned in Mount Vernon City Court Wednesday afternoon.

“We will not tolerate adults engaging in sexual acts with minors, and we encourage any other victims of Robert Pope to come forward,” Westchester County District Miriam Rocah said this afternoon. “This matter came to light because the mother of the victim became concerned about material that she found on her child’s phone, and I encourage all parents to remain vigilant about their children’s activities and interactions with others.”

Pope is the owner and head coach of Mount Vernon Baseball, an independently registered 501-C3 non-profit organization. Through this organization, Pope was the head coach of a number of youth baseball teams in the area, according to the statement.

Officials say the teams Pope coached had players ranging in age from 10 years old to 18 years old. Pope was also a volunteer coach with the Mount Vernon High School Varsity Baseball team.

The Mount Vernon Police Department is asking anyone with information about this investigation or other potential victims to call detectives at 914-665-2510.