Crime & Safety
Swim Coach Sexually Assaulted Girl In Burnsville: Police
Alfred John O'Neill, 61, of Savage was a coach at the Burnsville Swim Club, police said.
BURNSVILLE, MN — A man has been charged with one count of criminal sexual conduct in connection with an alleged "sexual relationship" he had in the late 1980s with a minor girl, Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom announced Thursday.
Alfred John O’Neill, 61, of Savage was coaching at the time at the Burnsville Swim Club, police said.
According to investigators, the U.S. Center for SafeSport received an anonymous report indicating the victim in this case may have been sexually abused by a former swimming coach many years ago. SafeSport then located the victim and later contacted the Burnsville Police Department, which began this investigation and met with the victim in June, authorities said.
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SafeSport is a non-profit organization charged with investigating and responding to reports of sexual misconduct within the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Movements.
The woman said she first met O’Neill at age 14 when she began swimming for the Burnsville Swim Club, according to a Dakota County news release.
Find out what's happening in Burnsvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
She also claimed O’Neill treated her as a favorite and increased alone time with her when she was 16, and by the time she was 17 years old he had started engaging in sexual contact with her, the criminal compliant states.
Authorities said that when O’Neill was questioned, he admitted that he had sexual contact with the victim, but stated that it had occurred after she had reached the age of 18.
O’Neill was arrested Sept. 12 and will make his first court appearance on this charge Thursday.
"A student athlete can easily be manipulated into a sexual relationship by a coach whom the student trusts, and such relationships can have long-term negative impacts upon the victim," Backstrom said in a statement.
"I wish to commend this victim’s courage in coming forward many years after this alleged crime occurred."
Backstrom thanked the Burnsville Police Department for investigation in this case.
Updated after the Dakota County Attorney's Office corrected itself in a second news release
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