Local camp counselor accused of sending lewd, explicit messages to 12-year-old girl

SOUTH JERSEY (WTXF) - A South Jersey camp counselor is accused of sending lewd, explicit messages to a 12-year-old girl.

"I'm concerned when she's doing her track because you never know," said Dawn Harris. She's unnerved to hear about a camp counselor and hockey coach who is now facing charges involving explicit and lewd messages with a 12-year-old girl. Police arrested 23-year-old Justin Maska Wednesday. Harris's daughter Camillia is a year younger than the victim.

"It's terrible because a lot of kids don't know they're innocent so they're thinking that it's ok to go back and forth with the coach but sometimes it's not. It's very inappropriate," said Harris.

According to a court document, the incident involved Maska in his position as camp counselor. The girl was directly under his supervision. The document states Maska asked the 12-year-old to send pictures of herself wearing a bra and thong and had sexually explicit conversations about what he wanted to do to her.

We talked to Mark Schiavo about what happened. He has a 14 and 16-year-old.

"It's disgusting. It's disturbing and intolerable," said Schiavo.

Maska also reportedly plays hockey and coaches several teams in Gloucester and Camden County including the West Deptford Street Hockey League. People at practice Friday did not want to talk. The league website says Maska coaches a team called the Predators. He's pictured on a GoFundMe page set-up in January asking for help paying to go to Slovakia to play and coach for the USA Ball Hockey Championship.

"This is a child. You're corrupting the morals of a minor by just thinking that let alone going forward with the texts," said Schiavo.

Police did not give the name of the camp where Maska worked. Nor did they say whether they think there may be other victims. He's due back in court in October.