High school football coach accused of sex acts in car with student, Florida cops say

A now-former high school football coach is facing felony charges after a student reported “unlawful sexual activity” with him, including kissing in a locker room, according to police in Florida. The suspect, 43-year-old James Edward Ford III, “was an assistant football coach for West Port High School” when the incidents occurred, the Ocala Police Department said in a Jan. 19 news release.

A school resource officer was the first to learn of the accusations and contacted detectives with the Ocala Police Department. “The student … disclosed that she and Ford started communicating through text messages and over the phone in January 2024 and began meeting outside of school in August 2024,” police said. “The student said they kissed, including once in a school locker room, and had a sexual encounter in Ford’s vehicle in September 2024. The student was 16 years old at the time of the encounter.” Ford is no longer employed by the Marion County Public Schools, which is also conducting an investigation, a district official told the Ocala StarBanner.

He was arrested Jan. 17 and charged with “unlawful sexual activity with certain minors, offenses against students by authority figures, travel to meet a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity, and use of two-way communication device to facility felony,” police said. All four charges are felonies, according to Marion County jail records. Ocala police suspect there might be other victims and ask that “anyone else (who) has experienced similar behavior to please let law enforcement know.”