Soccer coach drugged players, raped boys on video, TN cops say. He pleads guilty

When a youth soccer coach forgot his phone at a restaurant, staff members trying to figure out who had left it unwittingly found dozens of photos and videos of the man raping boys, Tennessee authorities said.

Camilo Campos-Hurtado, 65, described by police as a “popular” local soccer coach, has now pleaded guilty to five child sex offenses and two fraudulent immigration document charges, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee said June 17.

The federal public defender’s office told McClatchy News the office does not comment on cases.

According to an indictment, Campos-Hurtado’s sexual abuse stretches back to 2013, but it wasn’t until he left his phone at a restaurant in 2023 that his conduct was discovered, the Franklin Police Department said.

After Campos-Hurtado forgot his phone, the restaurant workers started looking through it to determine its owner, when police said they stumbled across “dozens of unconscionable videos and pictures of children,” McClatchy News previously reported.

The staff called the police, and investigators reported finding hundreds of these types of photos and videos of Campos-Hurtado sexually assaulting unconscious boys ranging in age from 9 to 17.

Officers said they learned Campos-Hurtado would visit school playgrounds to recruit players to his soccer team.

“After gaining their trust, Campos invited many of the kids to his home where he drugged and then raped them,” police said.

Detectives said some of the boys may not even know what had happened to them.

Investigators reported finding at least 10 victims, but Campos-Hurtado pleaded guilty as charged to four counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of receiving visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

While executing search warrants, investigators said they also found fake IDs and immigration documents, including three counterfeit social security cards, two fake legal permanent resident cards and a fraudulent resident alien card.

Campos-Hurtado, who prosecutors say lacks legal status in the U.S., was charged with using or possessing fraudulent immigration documents and possessing an identification document or authentication feature which was stolen or produced without lawful authority.

He pleaded guilty to all seven charges he was indicted on and is set to be sentenced in October, prosecutors said. He faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison.

After serving his sentence, Campos-Hurtado will be deported to Mexico, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Franklin is about a 20-mile drive south from downtown Nashville.

This story was originally published June 18, 2025 at 1:19 PM with the headline "Soccer coach drugged players, raped boys on video, TN cops say. He pleads guilty."