Christopher Ferrari, 24, is alleged to have met underage boys through the South Jersey Elite Barons Soccer Youth Program and to have requested explicit images from them over social media.
By Matt Skoufalos | October 9, 2019
An Oaklyn man is accused of having used his status as a soccer coach to send and request explicit images of underage children over social media.
Twenty-four-year-old Christopher Ferrari, a coach with the South Jersey Elite Barons Soccer Youth Program, was charged with manufacturing child pornography and multiple counts of endangering the welfare of a child.
Ferrari surrendered himself to the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office (GCPO) Tuesday, and was detained at the Salem County Correctional Facility pending an appearance in Gloucester County Superior Court today.
Ferrari allegedly “sent and requested explicit images via social media to underage boys” he met through the youth program, according to the GCPO. The program “has been very cooperative in assisting with the investigation,” the agency said.
Ferrari was a former captain of the Barons who lettered at Gloucester Catholic High School and whose collegiate soccer career included stops at Mercyhurst and Rutgers Universities, according to his biography with the Scarlet Raptors. He is the son of retired former Oaklyn Police Chief Chris Ferrari.
An attorney for the family declined to comment on the case except to say that Ferrari, 24, was scheduled for pretrial release pursuant to his court appearance Wednesday. He will next appear in court in late November.
Anyone who believes his or her child may have had contact with Ferrari is asked to contact GCPO Lt. Stacie Lick at 856-384-5608.
All persons accused of a crime are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. An arrest is not a conviction.
NJ Pen is free thanks to regular, small contributions. Please support our work.
| Subscription Options |
Get e-mails, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, or try Direct Dispatch, our new text service.
