Former WWF/WWE wrestler Mike “Duke” Droese is being indicted on attempted aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor.
A statement was issued on Monday by Chris Stanford, the District Attorney General for the 31st Judicial District in Tennessee.
Following an investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, one charge has been issued against Droese after he was alleged to have attempted to purchase child pornography in April 2024. He is facing a Class D felony charge, which carries a possible prison sentence of 2-4 years.
Droese is alleged to have used a Coinbase account to purchase the child sexual assault material through the dark web, and was flagged with his purchase terminated. Coinbase sent this information to the FBI, and the information was transferred to the Warren County Sheriff’s Department this past March.
Droese was made aware of the indictment and turned himself in without any incident to the Warren County Sheriff’s Department and was released on a bond of $10,000.
His arraignment is scheduled for Wednesday, May 28.
The press release noted:
As many of you may be aware, at the time of his indictment, Mr. Droese was employed the new DUI Coordinator for the 31 Judicial District Adult Recovery Court Program, commonly referred to as ‘DrugCourt (hereinafter “ARC”). Mr. Droese has served with the ARC Program for several years, in various capacities. While it is certainly concerning that a member of the ARC Program has allegedly committed such a repulsive crime, rest assured that at no point during his service as a member of the ARC Program, Mr. Droese was never given a job duty that mandated any contact with children. In addition, it should be noted that all ARC Court (Drug, DUI and Mental Health Court) participants are adults, with no exceptions.
Droese wrestled for the WWF from 1994 until 1996 and returned for the Gimmick Battle Royal at WrestleMania X-Seven in April 2001. His last wrestling match occurred two years ago when he participated in MLW’s Battle Riot V card in Philadelphia.
