This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

Police: Seal Beach coach admitted molesting boy

In two secretly recorded conversations just before his arrest, a Seal Beach sports camp owner admitted to molesting a teenage boy years earlier, according to a court filing by police.

Scott Durzo, 49, faces 18 felony counts including sodomy and committing lewd acts on a child. He pleaded not guilty during a court hearing Friday.

The accuser, now 21, told police he met Durzo through a sports camp.

Find out what's happening in Los Alamitos-Seal Beachwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The day before and the day of his arrest, Durzo had two conversations with the accuser, according to a sworn declaration by Seal Beach police Detective Chris Hendrix that is contained in the court file.

The man made a recorded call to Durzo on May 6 and wore a wire for an in-person meeting the next day, Hendrix wrote. In those conversations, Durzo admitted to touching him sexually and engaging in oral sex with him, according to the court filing.

Find out what's happening in Los Alamitos-Seal Beachwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

After his May 7 arrest, Hendrix wrote, Durzo spoke to police – also on tape – and “admitted culpability to some of the alleged crimes including the sexual assault of a child.”

Durzo’s lawyer couldn’t be reached.

The arrest shocked many people in Seal Beach, where Durzo has been well known for decades. He owns Seal Beach-based Scott Durzo’s Total Sport Camp, which is more than 30 years old.

Durzo also has worked as a part-time basketball and tennis coach for Los Alamitos schools and has been active in community events. His long experience with youth sports led police and prosecutors to say there could be more victims.

Deputy District Attorney Bobby Taghavi said Monday the case was still being investigated.

Durzo is being held in lieu of $250,000 bail and is next due in court July 11. No trial date has been set.

Prosecutors say the abuse happened sometime between 2005 and 2009, when the accuser was 13 to 16 years old. The man first made the accusations when he went to Seal Beach police in late April or early May.

“The suspect has worked with youth sports program(s) for approximately 15 years and has access to children,” Hendrix wrote in his declaration, which asked a judge to set bail at $250,000. “It is believed that there may be other victims who have yet to come forward and may be put in harm’s way if the suspect is released on bail. Additionally, the suspect has made comments that his life is over and there is no point moving on which may indicate his reluctance to return for court at a later time.”

Contact the writer: 949-229-5950 or ehartley@ocregister.com

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?