Little league coach sentenced to 10 years for attempting to meet a 13-year-old child to engage in sexual activity

OCALA, Fla. – A Florida little league baseball coach has been sentenced April 1 to 10 years in federal prison, followed by a lifetime term of supervised release, for attempted enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Joseph Rocco Quaranta, 48, of Dunnellon, pleaded guilty on Nov. 19, 2024.

“The sentencing of this former little league baseball coach serves as a reminder that predatory action against children will not be tolerated, and we will use every resource at our disposal to ensure that justice is served,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Orlando Assistant Special Agent in Charge David Pezzutti. “HSI, alongside our partners at the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, the Ocala Police Department, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, is unwavering in its commitment to protect our children from predators who seek to exploit them.”

According to court documents, on July 25, 2024, an undercover detective with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office posed online as a 13-year-old girl. Quaranta contacted the detective’s account and, after learning the child’s age, engaged in a sexually explicit conversation. Quaranta then arranged to meet the child at a predetermined location in Marion County to engage in sexual activity. When Quaranta arrived at the meeting location, he was arrested. After his arrest, Quaranta admitted to deputies that he had been volunteering as a local little league baseball coach.

This case was investigated by ICE Homeland Security Investigations Orlando, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, the Ocala Police Department, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Janette Swartzberg.