Former WWE wrestler Michael Droese, known during his wrestling career as Duke “The Dumpster” Droese, has been indicted by a Tennessee grand jury on charges of attempting to purchase child sexual abuse material.
The 56-year-old, who was active in the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE) between 1994 and 1996, is facing one count of attempted sexual exploitation of a minor, a Class D felony under Tennessee law.
Prosecutors allege that Droese attempted to buy the illicit material via the dark web in April 2024. He is accused of using cryptocurrency to carry out the transaction.
However, the payment was flagged and blocked by digital currency platform Coinbase, which then reported the suspicious activity to the FBI.
Federal agents passed the information on to local authorities in Warren County, who subsequently requested assistance from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI).
Droese later turned himself in to the police. He was booked and subsequently released on a $10,000 bail bond.
He will appear in Warren County Circuit Court for arraignment on May 28.
If convicted, Droese faces a potential prison sentence of two to four years.
At the time of the alleged offences, Droese was employed as a DUI coordinator within the 31st Judicial District Adult Recovery Court Program, a role in which he had held multiple responsibilities over the years.
District Attorney General Chris Stanford confirmed Droese was terminated from his position immediately after the allegations surfaced. He clarified that Droese did not work directly with children in his capacity at the recovery court.
Stanford also noted the severity of the charge, stating that the attempt to purchase child sexual abuse material constituted an aggravated offence.
“The financial transaction is what fuels the production and distribution of such material globally, making this a particularly serious offence,” he said.
Droese had previously been featured in a 2009 WWE article detailing his career change after wrestling, noting that he had become a schoolteacher working with children with learning disabilities and had taken on a role coaching high school athletes.
In 2013, he resigned from his teaching position after being caught selling oxycodone to an undercover agent. He served a one-month prison sentence for that offence.
Droese was a popular figure in 1990s professional wrestling, known for feuds with major WWE stars including Jerry “The King” Lawler and Paul “Triple H” Levesque.
He left WWE in 1996 but continued to perform in smaller wrestling promotions around the world.
