Key Biscayne residents pack meeting, demand action on gymnastics coach accused of abuse
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Key Biscayne’s Dark Secret
Key Biscayne gymnastics coach Oscar Olea had been trailed by sex abuse allegations for over 12 years. Weeks after the Miami Herald published an investigation, Olea was arrested.
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Key Biscayne residents showed up in force at Tuesday night’s council meeting, reacting to allegations against a local gymnastics coach that he sexually abused girls, including those who were his students. The allegations, dating back a decade and reported to police at the time, were detailed recently in a Miami Herald investigation.
The residents demanded a town hall.
“Man up and plan this town hall meeting,” said Betty Sime Conroy, who has been a resident of Key Biscayne for 59 years and is one of the pioneers in the village’s incorporation.
The council agreed to some sort public forum, details to be announced, and the village manager promised to look at how the Parks and Recreation Department hires vendors.
It was the first time that the council met since the Herald published its investigation outlining a pattern of alleged sexual abuse by Oscar Olea, 38, a gymnastics coach and studio owner who coached for a while at the community center in the employ of a vendor. The meeting had about 50 people in attendance, a rarity, according to some residents. More than 10 spoke during public comment in favor the town hall where parents could be educated on protecting children and how to report cases of abuse.
Olea has not been charged with any crimes.
A previous investigation into Olea by police was opened late last year when the parents of two girls, ages 4 and 7, told the Herald and police that Olea touched their children and talked to them in an inappropriate matter during gymnastics lessons. The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s office did not file charges, citing inconsistent statements made by the girls as one of the reasons. Police took a fresh look at Olea after the Herald published is investigation.
Council members Brett Moss and Oscar Sardiñas both said they had daughters who took classes with Olea at his studio, Flipout Workout.
Moss said his daughter took classes with Olea up until he abruptly stopped teaching late last year, and only found out why he closed up shop through the Herald’s reporting.
Fernando Diez, a Key Biscayne resident who identified himself as the father of one of Olea’s students at Flipout, pleaded with Police Chief Francis Sousa to use every tool at his disposal in the investigation of Olea. “This cannot happen again in one of the most affluent communities in our county,” Diez said.
John McKenzie, another resident who spoke during public comment , said he used to volunteer as a coach at the Key Biscayne Community Center and that during that time he was never asked if he was certified by Safesport — an organization that fields complaints, trains and certifies coaches — or to complete a background check. “This isn’t just to protect the kids, it is to protect the village” he said. “Think of the liability.”
Chief speaks
Chief Francis Sousa faced residents for the first time since the Herald’s investigation, describing the department’s investigative process and how it works with the state attorney’s office.
He tried to instill confidence in the safety of the island and the effectiveness of his force.
“There is no active criminal threat to our community at this time,” he said.
While the chief gave no details on the investigation, he did say the department’s priority during the investigative process is the alleged victims.
The accusers include one woman, now in her mid-20s, who says she was repeatedly sexually assaulted by Olea when she was 13 and taking private lessons with the then-25-year old, another who was allegedly raped when she was 17 and a third who says Olea had sex with her on multiple occasions when she was underage.
Back 10 years ago, police had two separate reports that mentioned Olea and two of the alleged victims. The mother of the 17-year-old says she spoke to the previous chief and told him of her daughter’s rape, but she never filed an official report. No investigation was undertaken by police.
Days after the Herald published its investigation, two of the women who spoke to the Herald made formal complaints to police. The third, who alleges she was raped by Olea, contacted police but has not had a formal interview despite reaching out two weeks ago. She had an interview scheduled, but it was canceled due to the investigator’s family emergency and it has not been rescheduled, she told the Herald.
Asked about that, Sousa reiterated he would not answer questions about the investigation. Moments later he said police were in the middle of the investigative process, and that if the alleged victim is unhappy she should talk to him rather than the media.
After Sousa made his presentation, the five council members and the mayor were able to ask him questions.
Council member Franklin Caplan asked Sousa whether there is a way for police to intervene when there are allegations that don’t necessarily rise to the level of criminal charges.
Olea requested a permit from the Parks and Recreation Department in 2013 after having been fired from American Gymsters, the contractor serving the rec department, for carrying a teenage girl in an inappropriate manner at the community center. Despite that and the police reports, one involving inappropriate letters exchanged with the 13-year-old, he was issued a permit to hold classes at the park across from the police station by Parks and Rec Director Todd Hofferberth. Olea had no criminal record.
Sousa responded to Caplan, saying he has interviewed Olea. He added that Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernández Rundle called him earlier in the day to offer her office’s “full support.”
Maria Eugenia Rodriguez, who spoke to reporters outside the chambers, said of Hofferberth: “That man, that man that’s been here for more than 10 years, that man needs to be immediately fired. ... Why was [Olea] given a license to keep operating and teaching children?”
A petition circulated around the village sought the town hall, called for greater transparency from local officials and asked the police department, parks and rec director, village clerk and other village officials to answer questions from the community.
Louisa Conway, who had circulated the petition, collecting hundreds of signatures, questioned why the village was seemingly “reluctant” to hold the town hall.
“They do not want to take questions or address the concerns of parents. Look at the second largest demographic on the island — 10- to-14-year olds…one would think this govt would stop playing hide and seek on this issue,” she wrote in a text to a reporter.
This story was originally published February 13, 2024 at 11:28 PM.
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