North Texas skating coach now barred from teaching amid sexual assault charges

DALLAS COUNTY, Texas - A North Texas figure skating coach charged with indecency with a child and sexual assault is barred from coaching or teaching skating students as a condition of his bond, according to court documents obtained by FOX 4 on Wednesday.

Details of the arrest and bond conditions

What we know:

47-year-old Benjamin Shroats was arrested after Allen police received a report alleging he engaged in inappropriate relationships with two of his athletes. Police said one of the alleged relationships began when the athlete was a minor.

Shroats has been arraigned on one count of indecency with a child and one count of sexual assault. 

Court records show that, in addition to being prohibited from coaching or teaching figure skating, Shroats is not allowed to have contact with the alleged victims or their families.

Response from defense attorney

In a statement, Shroats’ attorney said he "unequivocally" denies the allegations.

What they're saying:

"Mr. Shroats unequivocally denies the allegations against him," the statement said. "Criminal charges are accusations and not findings of guilt."

According to his attorney, Shroats has spent the past 30 years coaching and teaching figure skating in North Texas, including at the Allen Community Rink. He has previously coached accomplished skaters, including Plano native and Olympic figure skater Amber Glenn.

Expert insight on investigation

Dig deeper:

Michelle Simpson Tuegel is an attorney who represents survivors of abuse, including the sex abuse case against former U.S. gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar. She is not involved in the case but said investigations in similar cases often include a review of electronic communications.

"I would expect that Allen PD, if they have not already, will be getting a search warrant for his electronic devices," Simpson Tuegel said.

She said families sometimes are unaware of the extent of communications between coaches and young athletes.

"I often talk with parents and children who we represent, and we talk about how we need to look at all of their devices and see all the communications that they had with their coach," she said. "And sometimes the parents’ response is, ‘Well, my kid didn’t communicate with the coach,’ and they didn’t realize that they were."

Simpson Tuegel said it would not be unusual for additional alleged victims to come forward as a case moves forward, though as of now no additional victims have been publicly identified.

She added that in some cases, civil lawsuits may be filed after criminal proceedings conclude, potentially involving other adults or organizations.

What's next:

The investigation remains ongoing, and no additional victims have come forward as of this article.

Shroats was booked into the Collin County Jail, where his total bond was set at $200,000.