Former YMCA Swim Coach Charged in NJ Child Porn Sting

A former swim coach at Old Bridge-Freehold YMCA in New Jersey was one of 79 offenders caught in a massive statewide child pornography sting.

James Cutrone was charged last week as part of Operation Safety Net, which according to The Asbury Park Patch was a 9-month collaborative initiative between multiple agencies and led by the New Jersey Regional Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

Cutrone, 54, had coached at the Old Bridge-Freehold YMCA since 2016, when he was hired as the program’s director of competitive aquatics. A 2016 press release announcing his hiring called him “a gentleman, with high values” and said that Cutrone was “first and foremost a coach with integrity and class.” The release says that Cutrone had previously coached at the college level with Carnegie Mellon, Loyola and John [sic] Hopkins.

Operation Safety Net led to 79 arrests spread throughout all 21 counties within New Jersey. The program targeted child sex offenders who used the internet and social media.

New Jersey Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino released a statement on the arrests, per NJ.com:

“The men we arrested lurked in the shadows of the internet and social media, looking for opportunities to sexually assault young children or to view such unspeakable assaults by sharing child pornography. We set up a wide safety net in this operation to snare these alleged predators and to protect children, which remains our highest priority. With our new mobile forensics lab and electronics-sniffing dog, we’re even better equipped to uncover the evidence that will keep these offenders behind bars, where they cannot threaten or further exploit vulnerable victims.”