The owner of a karate school in Yonkers was indicted today on charges that he sexually assaulted a 16-year-old female student in May, the Westchester District Attorney's office said.
It is the third case brought in roughly a year that has involved accusations of sexual misconduct against an athletic coach or instructor in Westchester County. The incidents have stirred deep concern in many suburban communities, where parents often send their children several times a week to instructors and coaches for lessons in gymnastics, dance, swimming and similar activities.
The suspect in the Yonkers case, Rui Benros, 35, is accused of fondling the student on May 13, during her first lesson at the Shu Ku Kai Karate School at 116 Lake Avenue. Mr. Benros was charged with first-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child. Second Meeting
The student, who was not identified, left the school uninjured immediately after the attack. She told her mother about the incident, and both reported it to the police in Yonkers the same day, the authorities said.
"It was only the second time she saw the guy," said Lieut. William Drain, the head of the major case squad for the Yonkers Police Department. "She resisted and she left."
Mr. Benros, who also volunteers as an instructor at the Boys and Girls Club in Yonkers, could not be reached for comment.
The incidents in Westchester County have come at a time when experts say female athletes and their parents have complained in increasing numbers about sexual abuse and harassment from male coaches. Those allegations have placed an uncomfortable spotlight on after-school athletic programs, which, experts are learning, can present opportunities for abuse.
"We see these cases more and more often, and they are of great concern to us," said the Westchester District Attorney, Jeanine Pirro. "We have been and continue to be vigilant in prosecuting those who have access to young people through training and athletic schools and who overstep the line of trust."
The previous case to be brought in the county involved a coach at World Cup Gymnastics in Chappaqua who was charged with sodomizing a 15-year-old female student in 1990. The student, now 18, only recently made the allegations against the instructor, Riccardo Goddard, 33. Mr. Goddard has denied the charges. Figure Skating Case
In October 1993, a championship skating instructor was sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison for raping and sexually abusing several of his teen-age students. The instructor, Stephen Savino, 37, taught figure skating at the Hommocks Park Ice Rink in Mamaroneck and the Harvey School Rink in Katonah. He was charged with abusing five girls, four of them students between the ages of 14 and 17, from 1986 to 1991. The other victim was under the age of 11.
In the latest incident, the authorities said, the female student was attacked during her second visit to the club on May 13. The day before, she and a friend had gone to the club, which opened this year, inquiring about karate lessons.
"He suggested that she come back," Ms. Pirro said, referring to Mr. Benros. "The friend was unable to go back with her for lessons the next day, so she went herself."
During the lesson, the authorities said, Mr. Benros began fondling the student, who resisted and then left. Three days later, after the girl and her mother filed a complaint against him, Mr. Benros was questioned by detectives and placed under arrest.
