Austin Maddox, the former MLB player, has been arrested in Florida after being caught up in a police underage sex sting, authorities have announced.
Ex-Boston Red Sox pitcher Maddox, who retired from baseball in 2020, has been accused of soliciting sex over the internet from people who they believed were children.
How Austin Maddox was arrested for his alleged involvement in a child exploitation ring
Jacksonville Sheriff T. K. Waters said that the 33-year-old is one of 27 people to have been arrested as part of a huge multi-agency operation in April.
“Austin Maddox, a former Red Sox MLB player, traveled with the intent of engaging in sexual activity with a 14-year-old child,” Waters said at a news conference Monday.
Video footage released by the sheriff’s office showed an officer tackling Maddox to the ground, and it is claimed he “resisted arrest” before police dogs were brought out.
He is charged with four felony counts, including traveling to meet after using a computer to solicit a child. He is being held in jail on a $300,000 bond.
It is alleged that Maddox began communicating with an agent who was manifesting as an underage girl on April 28.
Despite being informed by the ‘girl’ that they were 14, Maddox expressed his intent to have sex with her, according to the arrest report. He then agreed to meet her at a pre-arranged location and was arrested by the cops on arrival.
Austin Maddox’s MLB career to date
After playing baseball in college for the University of Florida, the Jacksonville native was drafted by the Red Sox in 2012.
He made his MLB debut in 2017 after spending several years in the minor leagues, and spent a total of three months on their roster before injury problems forced him to go back.
A persistent shoulder injury denied him the chance to play and he was released from the team in 2019, retiring shortly after.
Maddox‘s defense attorney, James Hill, said he intends to fight the allegations against him and will enter a plea of ‘not guilty’ should formal charges be filed to the prosecutor.
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