Clay School Let Accused Predator Coach Kids Without Required Background Check
Mikal Detoro's arrest points to a years-long pattern of failed oversight in district wrestling programs
Mikal Detoro was a volunteer wrestling coach at Wilkinson Junior High until he was arrested in April for attempting to have sex with an underage boy in his Jeep.
Now, Clay County School Board members are calling for a full investigation into Detoro’s stint as a wrestling coach, as allegations have emerged that Detoro did not have a completed, cleared level two background check.
The School Board policy requires a robust background check for volunteers who are around students for extended periods or without the supervision of a district employee.
The School District Administration, led by Superintendent David Broskie, enacts the policies set by the board.
Had the School Board policy been properly implemented, the background check would have prevented Mikal from being on campus as a coach, given his criminal record dating back nearly 20 years to 2008.
Mikal has a brother named Mark. Mark was named the head wrestling coach at Ridgeview High School in June of last year.
Mark and his wife, Whitni, own the Iron Forge Wrestling Academy, which operates inside the gym facilities at Ridgeview High School
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office busted Detoro as part of a larger sting operation, and they say Detoro’s Jeep was equipped with multiple cameras and was prepared for the illegal activity before he arrived.
When the news broke about Mikal’s arrest, his sister-in-law, Whitni, sent text messages to the families of local wrestlers advising them not to speak to the police about their investigation. Her reasoning? Speaking to the police would result in a HIPAA violation.
HIPAA, which stands for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, is a law enacted by Congress in 1996 to protect medical information from being shared or disclosed without the patient’s consent.
Unfortunately for the Detoros, talking to the police about a wrestling club would not violate federal law.
While news of a wrestling coach's involvement in illicit activities may have come as a shock to some school district leaders, there have been warning signs of a toxic environment in Clay’s wrestling clubs.
Two years ago, Clay News & Views exposed a lawsuit brought about by a student at Clay High School who alleged abuse at the hands of fellow wrestlers in the program.
Did the Clay County School District take any accountability for the incident? No, instead they attempted to discredit the allegations and blame the victim, alleging in a later court filing that the incident did happen but was the fault of the victim himself.
In 2025, Clay News & Views uncovered the story of Paul James “PJ” Cobbert, who was accused of multiple instances of sexual assault by one of his wrestlers.
Cobbert, who was the head wrestling coach at Fleming Island High School, avoided criminal charges only because the statute of limitations prevented the Clay County Sheriff’s Office from holding him accountable.
While under investigation by law enforcement, Cobbert was suspended from coaching the Fleming Island team. His replacement was none other than Mark Detoro, Mikal's brother and Whitni's husband. Mark was PJ’s assistant at the time of the investigation.
Despite being placed in charge of the Fleming Island wrestling program, parents alleged that Mark Detoro allowed PJ to remain in charge even though PJ was barred from campus. Mark Detoro and Cobbert were wrestlers together at Clay High School.
Cobbert was eventually stripped of his teaching license, resigned from his coaching job at Fleming Island High, and closed the wrestling gym he owned in Green Cove Springs.
The Detoros went on to open Iron Forge Wrestling, and Mark was named head wrestling coach at Ridgeview High. His accused brother, Mikal, was active at Iron Forge and Wilkinson Junior High.
The arrest of Detoro has left parents with many questions, the first of which is how a person without a level two background check was allowed unsupervised access to students.
Mikal Detoro has been previously accused of two crimes that involved minors. The first was in 2008, when a student accused Mikal Detoro of grabbing and twisting his arm, which the student said was a frequent occurrence.
The student also alleged that Mikal “liked to put his hands on other boys that go to his school.” The specific school where the incident occurred was not named in the report.
In 2016, Detoro was arrested on a felony charge of “Interference with a minor.” Court filings allege that Mikal Detoro drove to the house of two minors and took them to a closed park without their parents’ knowledge or consent.
Sheriff’s deputies located Detoro at the park with the minors, who advised the deputies they had shown objects such as a "pocket pussy, penis pump, and Playboy Magazines" over the course of several months of interactions with Detoro. Detoro was arrested at the park.
Mikal was also charged with possession of Cannabis during the incident and was found to have sexual stimulation objects and devices in his car, along with male enhancement pills.
Given that all the information Clay News & Views discovered was publicly available, a level-two background check would have revealed Detoro’s record and raised red flags about his involvement with students.
It is unclear what changes, if any, Superintendent Broskie implemented after the Clay High and PJ Cobbert incidents. It is also unclear what mechanisms are in place to ensure that schools are following the background check policy moving forward.
Excellent reporting, this is absolutely disgusting. I think the District has some explaining to do. This person should not be allowed within miles of any child. Or civil society in my opinion
Congratulations on another piece of actual reportage.