Former Unioto teacher, football coach arrested in Hocking County prostitution sting

Megan Becker, Chillicothe Gazette
·3 min read
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ATHENS ― A former Unioto and Jackson teacher and football coach was arrested in Hocking County during a human trafficking sting, according to the Hocking County Sheriff's Office.

Wayne Horsley, 52 of Athens, was arrested and charged over the weekend with engaging in prostitution, a first-degree misdemeanor.

Horsley and several other individuals were arrested after allegedly responding to online ads to meet women and children to pay to engage in various sexual acts with them, according to the sheriff's office. Horsley posted bail and was released from the Southeast Ohio Regional Jail.

The Hocking County Sheriff's Office reported on Monday that they collaborated with the Southeastern Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to conduct a joint human trafficking operation in the Hocking Hills area.

The agencies made the following arrests during the sting operation:

  • Kyle Crowe, 22 of Chillicothe, was arrested and charged with engaging in prostitution, a first-degree misdemeanor.

  • A 17-year-old juvenile was charged with being delinquent, by engaging in prostitution, a first-degree misdemeanor.

  • Erick M. Wrestler, 50 of Logan, was arrested and charged with engaging in prostitution, a first-degree misdemeanor.

  • Stewart Rebell, 49 of Ware, Massachusetts, was arrested on a warrant for importuning, a fourth-degree felony. The warrant was issued by Task Force Agents for Rebell, who is a registered sex offender and had previous convictions for juvenile sex offenses, including multiple charges of rape of a child, by force or with the threat of murder.

Rebell allegedly planned to meet with investigators who were posing as a 15-year-old female in Ohio and then take that child with him out of state. Rebell was located and arrested by Massachusetts State Police for the warrant and will be extradited to Ohio, according to the sheriff's office.

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Horsley worked at Jackson High School as a social studies teacher from 1994 to 1998. During that time, he was the assistant varsity football coach and assistant varsity basketball coach, said Jackson Superintendent Phil Howard.

He was a Unioto High School social studies teacher and football coach from 1998 to 2000.

Horsley has been a social studies teacher at Athens High School since 2007. He has coached football, boys' and girls' basketball and girls' golf through the district. He has also been an advisor for the National Honor Society.

Horsley is on a paid suspension pending the investigation, according to Athens Superintendent Tom Gibbs. He said Horsley can not have contact with students or staff or be permitted onto school property until the matter is resolved.

"The members of the Athens City School District Board of Education and Administration condemn human trafficking in any form and are very disappointed to learn that one of our own employees may have supported such an egregious practice," Gibbs said in a public statement.

Megan Becker is a reporter for the Chillicothe Gazette. Contact her at 740-349-1106, email her at mbecker@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @BeckerReporting

This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: Former Unioto teacher, football coach arrested in prostitution sting