State police at Rockview on Monday filed charges against a Connecticut man accused of molesting a teenage girl while he was a seasonal gymnastics coach at Camp Woodward in Haines Township.
Police received a Childline report in February 2021 about the assault of a teen gymnast from Illinois who was attending Woodward Gymnastics Camp in the summer of 2019.
The girl, an Illinois resident who was 14 at the time of the incident, told investigators that gymnastics coach Nathaniel Singer, then 23 years old, digitally penetrated and groped her while spotting her during exercises.
The girl said Singer, “followed her around camp constantly and made her feel uncomfortable,” according to a criminal complaint.
Singer, now 26, was charged with two felony counts of aggravated indecent assault, two misdemeanor counts of indecent assault and one felony count of corruption of minors. He was arraigned by District Judge Gregory Koehle, who set unsecured bail at $50,000.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 13.
The girl’s family filed a civil lawsuit against Singer and Woodward in December. The lawsuit alleges that the girl reported the incidents to camp administrators who challenged her credibility, discouraged her from “spreading rumors” about Singer and did not report the allegations to law enforcement.
Woodward has asked a federal judge to dismiss some of the claims, arguing they fell outside the scope of Singer’s employment and the camp could not be held liable.
Singer was suspended by the U.S. Center for SafeSport and USA Gymnastics as of July 2020 and was given a “no contact” directive in May 2021.
