Ex-Bremen High coach Geoffrey Brad Matthews sentenced for sex crimes

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Geoffrey Brad Matthews, a former Bremen High School coach and bus driver, was sentenced to 49 years in prison on child molestation and grooming charges. (Credit: Haralson County Sheriff's Office)

HARALSON COUNTY, Ga. - A former Bremen teacher and coach was sentenced in Haralson County after a jury found him guilty of sexually exploiting students, according to the district attorney's office. 

What we know:

A Haralson County judge sentenced Geoffrey Brad Matthews to 50 years, ordering the first 49 years to be served in prison, following a year on probation. 

It comes after a jury convicted Matthews on all 13 counts, including child molestation and grooming-related charges on Sept. 9.

During the two-week trial, prosecutors called more than two dozen witnesses to the stand, including eight young male victims. Prosecutors presented text messages, photos, and testimony showing abuse that occurred inside the school’s wrestling complex, classrooms, and on school buses.

Bremen police launched an investigation into Matthews in early March after a group of male students, ages 14 to 17, compared notes and realized he was allegedly targeting multiple teens. 

Sgt. Dalton McKenzie said Matthews allegedly asked students to perform sexual acts or offered them money to do so, with investigators noting at least one victim was taken to a camera-free area of the school and sexually assaulted.

In a separate investigation, the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office reported that a 17-year-old victim came forward, disclosing that Matthews, a trusted family friend, had been abusing them since they were 12 years old.

What they're saying:

District Attorney Jaeson Smith praised the courage of the young victims who came forward to testify.

"We owe these brave children our deepest gratitude for coming forward and having the courage to expose this predator," DA Smith said. "Because of them, he will spend practically the rest of his natural life behind bars, where he belongs."

What we don't know:

It remains unclear when Matthews will go on trial for separate, unrelated sex crime charges involving children that he still faces in Carroll and Paulding counties.