A former ‘American Ninja Warrior’ champion has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for multiple federal child sex crimes.
In a press release, the United States Attorney’s Office District of New Jersey confirmed that Andrew Dreschsel was sentenced to 121 months in jail on Wednesday, after pleading guilty to the charges on June 1.
Dreschsel’s sentence was based on him receiving child pornography and enticement to travel for illicit sexual conduct. He was also ordered to pay $100,000 in restitution and serve 15 years of probation.
“Drechsel admitted that he originally met the victim in 2014 through his activities in the parkour community as an ‘American Ninja Warrior,'” the press released stated.
“Drechsel admitted texting the victim and discussing his plans to engage in sexual activity with the victim. At Drechsel’s urging, the victim traveled across state lines in July 2015 so that Drechsel could have sexual relations with the victim.”
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Dreschsel was charged in 2020 with manufacturing child pornography, enticement of a minor to travel for illicit sexual conduct, travel with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor, and use of interstate commerce to entice a minor.
Alex Dreschel Criminal Comp… by Jacquelyn Gray
Prosecutors said he traveled from Florida to New Jersey to have sexual relations with the underage victim.
Drechsel met the victim in 2014 at an event attended by other “American Ninja Warrior” contestants. Dreschel then had sex with the girl multiple times beginning in 2015 — when she was 15, and he was 26.
Drechsel continued a sexual relationship with the girl for the next two years, when she was between the ages of 15 and 17. He often asked the teen to have Skype conversations while naked, and kept several pornographic photos and videos of her in his possession.
The Hartford Courant reported that the criminal charges stemmed from incidents that occurred between January 2015 and April 2016. Dreschel’s arrest was the result of an investigation by authorities in Connecticut, Florida, and New Jersey.
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[Featured image: Andrew Drechsel/Instagram, Seminole County Sheriff’s Office]
