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Former Boulder swimming coach convicted of sexual abuse

Jon Michael Beber was a swimming coach for a club team in Boulder from 1997 to 2002.

BOULDER COUNTY, Colorado – A Boulder County judge on Friday sentenced a former swim coach to decades in prison after he was found guilty of sexually abusing children.

Jon Beber worked as a swim coach for the Boulder Swimming club team from 1997 to early 2002. He committed sexual offenses against several underage swimmers on this elite swim team. When the allegations against him first surfaced in 2002, he left the team and left Colorado.

Almost 20 years later, one of the victims contacted the public prosecutor’s office to inquire about the statute of limitations. This call led to the prosecution of Beber.

RELATED: Former Boulder swim coach convicted of decades of sexual abuse

In 2022, prosecutors filed charges against the defendant for sexually abusing teenage swimmers after three victims came forward.

In April, a jury convicted Beber on the following charges:

  • Two cases of sexual assault of a child by a person of trust – pattern of abuse
  • A case of sexual abuse of a child by a person of trust

On Friday, a judge sentenced Beber to 18 years to life on two counts and six years to life on the third count. The judge ordered that the sentences be served consecutively, for a total of 42 years to life in the Department of Corrections.

RELATED: Former Boulder swim coach arrested on suspicion of child sexual abuse

“This lengthy prison sentence is the right outcome. As the judge noted, cases like this are every parent’s worst nightmare,” said District Attorney Michael Dougherty.

“Parents take their children to practice or school and hope that the adults in charge will not abuse their position of trust,” Dougherty said. “This defendant did just that for years. It is only because of the courage and persistence of the victims that we have been able to bring charges all these years later and get justice for them and their families.”

As the prosecutor’s office previously announced, Beber also worked as a coach for swim teams in Atlanta (Florida) and Albany (New York).