Former high school coach Gary Robert “Bobby” Hix, who admitted to soliciting explicit photos from students, has been released.
NOKESVILLE, Va. — A Virginia high school football coach who pleaded guilty to soliciting explicit photographs from students has been released after just 261 days in jail.
Former Kettle Run High School football assistant and science teacher Gary Robert “Bobby” Hix was accused not only of asking students for nudes, but of grooming them.
The victims, according to the Fauquier County sheriff’s office, were students and football players who Hix was responsible for.
They described grooming as “gaining a child’s trust, isolating them, giving gifts and/or sharing secrets to make them feel special, and creating a situation where the abuse seems normal or acceptable.”
Hix had been arrested after a months-long investigation prompted by a tip from a concerned parent. Multiple people around the football program were placed on leave during the course of the investigation.
He pleaded guilty in November, and was sentenced to five years in prison. His sentence was suspended, except for the time served.
Hix must undergo counseling, and he will be on probation for five years. Hix must also register as a sex offender in the Commonwealth.