Ex-USA Softball President Charged with Sex Offense Against a Child

A former president of USA Softball was arrested and charged Tuesday with sex offenses against a child in California, according to reports.

The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department reported that John Gouveia, 61, was arrested on April 14 on eight felony counts of lewd lascivious acts with a child under the age of 14, CBS News said.

Gouveia reportedly paid a $250,000 bond and was released the same day from the Alameda County Jail. Officials did not publicly release the details of the arrest until this week.

No further details of the alleged crimes have been made public. It is also not clear why the sheriff’s department put out this release now, months after his arrest.

The suspect also worked for the Hayward Area Recreation and Park District for 25 years and retired as its general manager in 2016. But he was also a key member of the administration of the girls softball program for the United States and served on the governing council between 1991 and 2019.

In a statement, USA Softball stressed that Gouveia is no longer associated with the organization. The group also said they were not aware of the allegations until this week’s release of the information.

USA Softball also pointed out that the charges do not concern any person or program relating to the organization.

Statement from USA Softball pic.twitter.com/2EjCt4RQ41

— USA Softball (@USASoftball) July 6, 2022

The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone who may have information pertaining to Gouveia to call its Child Abuse Bureau at (916) 874-5191 or Sacramento Valley Crime Stoppers at (916) 443-HELP.

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