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Sex crimes, WI youth soccer club attorney speaks
A Wisconsin man, who previously volunteered with a youth soccer club, is charged in federal court after prosecutors say he tried to fly overseas to have sex with a child. An attorney said the allegations shocked club leaders.
FRANKLIN, Wis. - A Wisconsin man, who previously volunteered with a youth soccer club, is charged in federal court after prosecutors say he tried to fly overseas to have sex with a child. An attorney said the allegations shocked club leaders.
Croatian Eagles
What they're saying:
Michael Cerjak used to play for the Croatian Eagles Soccer Club and now serves as the program's attorney. He said the charges against 46-year-old Justin Kagerbauer have nothing to do with the Franklin-based club.
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"From the soccer club’s perspective, it’s really important to understand that this wasn’t an employee of the club," he said. "He wasn’t a coach, he wasn’t working with children, he wasn’t part of the club’s leadership or board of directors in any respect."
Croatian Eagles Soccer Club
Cerjak said Kagerbauer is a parent in the program but also served as director of tryouts and accounts receivable, a volunteer role that has no interaction with the players.
"This isn’t something that the club has faced, and there is no playbook in dealing with this type of situation. The club was trying to be as responsible as possible," he said.
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In light of the allegations, the club said Kagerbauer had a clean background check and was going through "SafeSport" training – a program that educates people on how to prevent situations such as sexual misconduct and abuse.
"I don’t think anybody wants to have a playbook on how to deal with this type of situation, but now there is some experience to draw on in case anything like this ever happens in the future," said Cerjak.
The club said it never received any complaints from players or families that suggest Kagerbauer engaged in any inappropriate behavior.
Federal charges
The backstory:
For months, prosecutors said he had been talking to who he thought was a woman in the U.K. with a 9-year-old niece. It was actually an undercover U.K. cop.
Court filings said he wrote he was "interested in girls '6+'" – as well as "I have no experience, but I would love to" and "it would be a dream come true." The undercover officer and Kagerbauer chatted more than 100 times from March through November, reiterating plans to visit the woman and the 9-year-old girl in November.
Sex crimes, Wisconsin youth soccer club director charged
A Wisconsin youth soccer club director is accused of trying to fly overseas to have sex with a child, part of an international undercover operation.
JetBlue confirmed to federal investigators that Kagerbauer bought a one-way ticket to Heathrow Airport in London via New York's John K. Kennedy International Airport for Nov. 27, 2025. He was supposed to fly out from Chicago O'Hare first but was taken into custody.
On Tuesday, a federal judge ordered Kagerbauer be detained pending trial. He waived his right to a preliminary hearing on Friday.
What's next:
It's unclear when Kagerbauer will be back in court.
The Source: FOX6 News interviewed Attorney Cerjak, obtained and reviewed documents filed with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, and reviewed archived websites.