Well-known polo player and trainer accused of sexually abusing underage girls

A household name in the polo world is facing serious allegations of sexual abuse involving underage girls.

Polo player turned elite trainer John Gobin lives in West Palm Beach. He is accused of sex crimes and has a civil lawsuit pending against him for his alleged actions at his training center in Virginia.

This Virginia civil lawsuit seeks more than $5 million from Gobin and accuses him of sex crimes against a 16-year-old player and employee at his Virginia polo facility.

“We are charging him with statutory rape,” said attorney Ari Wilkenfeld, who is representing the victim.

Wilkenfeld claims in the lawsuit that the 55-year-old man used his position and influence in the sport to coerce her into sex, and in many cases pay her afterwards.

“It was an easy decision to become involved in this case on behalf of the client,” Wilkenfeld said.

The lawsuit stated that “the plaintiff was raped by Gobin more than fifteen times.”

Wilkenfeld said the final blow for the victim occurred in West Palm Beach, where Gobin lives and where some of the alleged encounters took place. According to the lawsuit, the victim allegedly saw Gobin inappropriately touching a friend and co-worker during a dinner. At that point the victim stopped.

“That could be anyone’s kid,” Wilkenfeld said. ‘That could be my child. That could be someone else’s child that I care about. I think we can make a difference here.”

I contacted Gobin’s lawyer, who filed a countersuit for defamation.

In addition to the lawsuit, the Faquier County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia confirmed that Gobin was charged in June with two felony counts of having consensual sex with a child over 15 years old.

Gobin’s attorney said his client denies any wrongdoing. WPTV said the following in a statement:

“The two charges you refer to in your voice message are misdemeanor charges based on statements made by two women who played polo at Mr. Gobin’s club. They have changed their story several times. But based on the charges, it appears they are now claiming that Mr. Gobin had consensual sex with them years ago before they were 18 years old. These claims are completely false. They themselves admitted that these claims are not true by lying about him. They have admitted to third parties that they see this as a way to get rich. We intend to expose these lies when these cases ultimately go to trial. I hope that you will emphasize in your reporting that these claims are unsubstantiated, that Mr. Gobin adamantly denies the allegations and that he is presumed innocent to these accusations.

The United States Polo Association is also named as one of the defendants in the lawsuit. The association sent the following statement saying:

“The USPA has charged player member John Gobin with a membership-related conduct violation based on allegations that Mr. Gobin had sexual contact on multiple occasions with women who were under the age of 18 at the time. Mr. Gobin has denied the allegations and the charges. Pending the issuance of an appealable ruling in a lawsuit regarding the underlying allegations, the USPA has agreed to adjourn the special board meeting at which the charges against Mr. Gobin were to be heard During the pendency of the USPA disciplinary matter, Mr. Gobin has agreed to adhere to the USPA Youth Protection Policy with a modified definition of “Youth, which includes any individual under the age of 18 who is not a first- or second-degree relative.”

Gobin has two outstanding warrants for his arrest from Virginia, but the sheriff’s office there has no plans to extradite him because the charges are felonies.

They said he will be arrested if he returns to Virginia.

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