Chicago

Former Chicago Fire Juniors Soccer Coach Charged With Additional Sex Crimes

The new charges are related to two separate incidents allegedly concerning two 16-year-old girls

A former coach of the Chicago Fire’s youth team who was charged last month of sexually abusing a player has been accused of two additional sex crimes involving other girls.

Fernando Calderon, of Kelvin Park, appeared in court Wednesday on charges of sex assault of a teenager and indecent solicitation of a child for alleged incidents that happened before he was hired as Chicago Fire Juniors coach in 2013, Chicago police said.

The new charges include the alleged sexual assault of a girl, then 16, that happened on his block between September 2011 and December 2012, police said. The second charge concerns another then-16-year-old girl who he allegedly solicited in November 2011.

Calderon, 49, was originally charged in April with criminal sex abuse and indecent solicitation for incidents in 2017 and 2018 allegedly involving two teenage players from the soccer team he coached, prosecutors said.

Last July, he allegedly invited a 16-year-old player to his garage for a private training session and made sexual advance toward the girl, Cook County prosecutors said at a bail hearing in April. That month, Calderon allegedly asked another 16-year-old player during a private session about her sexual experiences, prosecutors said.

In a third incident, Calderon allegedly asked a 14-year-old girl about her sexual history during a team practice at Montrose Beach, according to prosecutors. He added his number to her phone and invited her to train at his house, prosecutors said. Calderon allegedly told her she could change in front of him “if she was comfortable with that,” prosecutors said.

A defense attorney for Calderon said he has no arrest record and has lived in Chicago for 30 years.

He was released after posting is $30,000 bail, and was placed on electronic home monitoring, according to court records.

President of Chicago Fire Juniors City, Paul Cadwell, said Calderon was suspended immediately after the club learned of the accusations and has been dismissed.

Copyright CHIST - SunTimes
Contact Us