WHITE PLAINS, NY – Victor Byrne, a former diving coach in Rockland County, was sentenced on Friday to 220 months in prison for transporting two minors across state lines for illegal sexual activity in 2006 and 2008. U.S. District Judge Nelson S. Román handed down the sentence following Byrne’s guilty plea in March 2024.
The case, prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, revealed Byrne’s abuse of his position as a coach to exploit young athletes.
According to court documents, Byrne transported a 16-year-old girl from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to Rockland County, New York, in July 2006, where he engaged in illegal sexual activity with her. Two years later, in February 2008, he arranged for another 16-year-old to be transported from New Jersey to Rockland County for similar exploitation. Byrne’s abuse of Victim-1 began when she was 14, and his manipulation of Victim-2 started when she was 16. During his tenure as a coach from 2001 to 2009, Byrne falsely presented himself as a police officer, gaining the trust of the young athletes and their families.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams condemned Byrne’s actions, stating, “Byrne’s conduct is the nightmare of every parent who entrusts their child to a coach.” Williams also stressed that the passage of time would not stop authorities from holding child predators accountable for their actions.
In addition to his nearly 19-year prison sentence, Byrne, 58, was sentenced to a lifetime of supervised release. The investigation was a collaborative effort between Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Marshal Service, and the NYPD Special Victims Unit. Authorities have indicated that the investigation into Byrne’s conduct remains ongoing, suggesting that further aspects of his abuse may still be uncovered.
