PARKERSBURG, W.Va. — The former CEO of the Parkersburg YMCA is heading to prison for two years for sex crimes involving a young girl.
Jeff Olson was sentenced in Wood County Circuit Court Thursday after previously pleading guilty to charges of distribution, exhibition and engaging in sexually explicit conduct with a minor.
Olson must register as a sex offender for life.
Wood County Prosecutor Pat Lefebure said Olson had sexually explicit conversations and distributed sexually explicit images to a girl in 2017 and 2018.
“He started a relationship essentially communicating via text and through FaceTime, social media with an individual on the tennis team. She was one of the tennis players while he was tennis coach that developed into him sending videos of himself,” Lefebure said.
Olson resigned from his position in Aug. 2023 after charges were filed against him. He turned himself in at Wood County Magistrate Court and was later released after posting a $40,000 bail.
The State Police Crimes Against Children led the investigation.
Lefebure said police will monitor Olson’s behavior after he’s released from prison. As part of his sentence, Olson must take a polygraph test at least once a year to prove he is staying away from minors on the internet, through texting or in person.
Lefebure said the sentence was a good result for Olson and the entire community.
“It provides a level of punishment for the defendant and it’s a message to the community that we’re going to take this seriously. There is consequences for these types of actions especially for someone who was in a role such as he was being a tennis coach and engaging in this type of behavior,” he said.