A Belpre youth soccer coach accused of posting a fabricated sexually explicit image of a 12-year-old player online will remain in custody on a $50,000 bond after a judge rejected his attorney's request to lower it. Adam K. Johnson, 42, faces one count of disseminating a fabricated sexual image of another person without consent, a fourth-degree felony under Ohio law.
Marietta Municipal Court Judge Randall Jedlink ordered the bond to stay unchanged Tuesday, according to WTAP. Johnson's defense attorney, Jack Blakeslee, had petitioned the court to reduce the bond, citing his client's community ties, medical needs, and financial obligations as a father of three children. The judge was not swayed, and bond conditions bar Johnson from any contact with anyone under age 18.
How the Investigation Began
Belpre Police executed a search warrant at Johnson's residence on September 23 after a 12-year-old player's mother reported a Facebook Story post that had digitally superimposed her daughter's face onto a nude adult body, per the Marietta Times. Detective J.J. Whittington's affidavit noted that witnesses had already provided police with screenshots of the post before the warrant was carried out.
The same affidavit describes shifting explanations from Johnson about his phone, the paper reports. He initially told witnesses his phone and bank account had been hacked, the report notes, before later claiming he had smashed the phone and thrown it from his vehicle.
Charges Rooted in Ohio's Updated Deepfake Law
The felony count against Johnson stems from Ohio Revised Code § 2917.211, a statute updated through House Bill 96 that took effect September 30, 2025, and specifically criminalizes knowingly disseminating a fabricated sexual image of another person without consent. The law explicitly defines fabricated sexual images to encompass non-consensual deepfakes and manipulated explicit media.
Judge Jedlink noted that additional charges could follow a forthcoming grand jury indictment. Under Ohio Revised Code § 2907.31, disseminating matter harmful to juveniles can range from a misdemeanor to a fourth-degree felony depending on the victim's age and the nature of the explicit content, a statute prosecutors in child exploitation cases frequently stack alongside other counts.
Case Moves Toward Grand Jury
Johnson waived his preliminary hearing in Marietta Municipal Court this week, sending his case to the Washington County Common Pleas Court grand jury for indictment review. Jedlink, who won the May 2023 primary and was elected in November after serving as magistrate for the Washington County Common Pleas Court Juvenile and Probate Division, presided over the bond hearing.
The case arrives as Ohio lawmakers push to toughen penalties further. Proposed Senate Bill 163 would require watermarks on AI-generated media and address criminalization of AI-generated content.
Not Belpre's First Youth Coaching Scandal
Belpre has faced this kind of case before. In 2018, Belpre Police investigated former Belpre High School soccer coach Trent Stanley, who was later sentenced to 3 to 15 years in prison for sexual assault and sending explicit photos to minor athletes, according to the News and Sentinel, with that prosecution involving coordinated efforts between West Virginia and Ohio authorities.
Johnson's case also lands amid a wider pattern of scrutiny facing youth sports supervisors across Ohio. In Obetz, municipal officials suspended youth soccer coach Billy L. Wilburn III last month after felony charges surfaced involving explicit digital media depicting a minor, as Hoodline previously reported. Readers should also note that an unrelated 25-year-old Illinois man who shares the name Adam Johnson faced 10 felony counts for online child grooming in August, a case with no connection to the Belpre defendant.
The allegations against Johnson remain unproven, and the case now awaits grand jury review in Washington County Common Pleas Court.
