ARAPAHOE COUNTY, Colo. — The former softball coach at Cherry Creek High School is accused of soliciting nude photos from an underage girl in Virginia, the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office (ACSO) said Wednesday.
The investigation into Paul (Pablo) Severtson, 37, began after the Virginia girl died by suicide in October of last year.
While investigating her death, the Hanover County Sheriff's Office in Virginia discovered she had been communicating with Severtson through several social media messaging apps. They contacted ACSO in March of this year.
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Investigators examined conversations between Severtson and the girl that occurred on KIK in September 2021. They found photos of the girl partially nude but never fully exposed, says an arrest affidavit from ACSO.
During the conversations, Severtson wrote, "don't feel embarrassed to send nudes, I've seen it all," the affidavit says. He also told the girl, "I would date you" and "you need to have confidence," according to the document.
At one point the girl replies to Severtson by saying, "I just worry about showing to much bc [sic] I'm not 18."
Severtson said he "understood" and suggested he would delete the images and send her a video of him deleting them, the affidavit says.
He later asked for a "nude 360 video" from the girl, according to the affidavit. When an investigator pointed out that he requested that after learning the girl was not 18, he suggested, "maybe he didn't see it" or that "maybe he had been drinking," the affidavit says.
When later contacted by investigators, Severtson said he "always" uses a fake name and pictures if he sends them and says he's around 22 or 23 years old, according to the document.
ACSO investigators found that Severtson was a coach for the girls softball team at Cherry Creek High School and the Colorado Styxx girls softball club. His employment with Cherry Creeks schools has since been terminated, the district said.
Severtson was also fired from his post with the Styxx, a spokesman said.
He has coached at Heritage High School, Littleton High School and Chaparral High School from November 2017 through August 2020, according to ACSO.
Severtson had three accounts on the social Media Chat app KIK using the names Tyson Richard with the user name TYSONHELP; Reggie Collins with a user name of REGGIEBBC11, and Jordan Styme with the username JSTYME8080.
Severtson passed himself off as 22 to 23 years old and said sometimes he was into fitness, ACSO said.
Investigators found that Severtson attempted to persuade his victim to produce and send nude images and videos of herself, which due to her age, would be considered child sexual abuse material.
On Wednesday, investigators from the ACSO Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) unit executed a search warrant at Severtson's home. He was taken into custody, and several items of evidence were seized from the home.
He was booked on one count of criminal solicitation, a Class 4 felony.
ACSO was concerned there might be additional victims of Severtson nationwide.
Anyone with information regarding Severtson or the names or usernames below should contact the ACSO tip line at 720-874-8477.
- Tyson Richard, user name TYSONHELP
- Reggie Collins, user name REGGIEBBC11
- Jordan Styme, user name JSTYME8080.
The Cherry Creek School District (CCSD) said it was notified of Severtson's arrest on Wednesday and that his employment was terminated immediately.
As part of their statement, the district noted that Severtson's arrest was not connected to his employment and did not involve any students.
Severtson worked for the district from 2020-2022. He also worked as a paraprofessional at Cherry Creek High School, West Middle School and with a small group of students at Cherry Creek Elevation. He began his employment with CCSD in August 2020.
In accordance with a state statute regarding mandatory parental notification for certain felony charges, the district has notified families at all three schools where Severtson worked.
Severtson went through the regular district hiring process, which includes a criminal background check and reference checks. The process did not raise any concerns about his employment, a district spokeswoman said.
Colorado Styxx Softball also released a statement regarding Severtson's arrest.
We were notified of Mr. Severson's arrest yesterday, Wednesday July 20th, and his involvement with our organization was immediately terminated the termination of the relationship did not involve any one of our players.
We have been in close contact with these parents of our players and will continue to make ourselves available to them for any questions they may have although we only know what has been reported by the media.
Mr. Severtson was a contracted coach of the Styxx organization. He was cleared on continuous annual background checks, both by the School Districts and USA Softball.
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