Ice-skating coach wanted for alleged child sex crimes

A figure-skating coach is wanted for allegedly sexually abusing a child who was under his custody at his Windermere-area home in 2005.

Andrei Berekhovski, 61, currently has an outstanding warrant for three counts of lewd or lascivious molestation and two counts of sexual activity with a child. He is accused of sexually abusing a 12-year-old female ice skater he used to coach, according to Orange County court documents.

Berekhovski has not yet been arrested on the charges filed against him. He is described as a 5-foot-11-inch tall white male weighing about 200 pounds with brown eyes and brown hair, according to his arrest affidavit.

A spokesperson with Orange County Sheriff’s Office said OCSO does not have a photo of Berekhovski. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement website lists Berekhovski as a wanted man.

The victim reported the abuse to the Sheriff’s Office in March 2018, and an arrest warrant was issued in June 2018. The victim also filed a civil lawsuit against Berekhovski in April 2019, according to the Orange County Clerk of Courts website.

Records show the alleged assaults occurred between mid-June 2005 to mid-July of that same year. At the time, the victim’s parents — who were living in Georgia — agreed to let her live with Berekhovski and his wife so she could receive ice-skating lessons from him. In addition to the lessons, Berekhovski took on the role of a caregiver to the victim while she lived with him and provided food and transportation to and from lessons. But during that stay, Berekhovski is accused of sexually assaulting the victim on multiple occasions, court records show.

One of the alleged assaults occurred while the victim was taking a shower, and three of them reportedly occurred while she was asleep on a couch in the family room of Berekhovski’s home. The final incident the victim described allegedly occurred when she and Berekhovski were on an airplane flying from Orlando to Delaware so she could compete in the 2005 Liberty Summer Figure Skating Competition. The victim told investigators that while she was asleep on the flight, Berekhovski attempted to sexually assault her. She then jumped up from her seat and ran to the bathroom, where she stayed until the plane landed, according to the court documents.

Although the address of the home where the alleged assaults occurred is redacted from court documents, the documents show the home is located within the 34786 zip code. According to the Orange County Property Appraiser, Berekhovski purchased a home in Keene’s Pointe in 2003. The arrest affidavit lists Berekhovski’s home address as 13347 Lake Bryan Drive, Orlando.