Former North Texas Gymnastics Coach Gets 50 Years In Prison For Sexually Assaulting Athletes
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) — Former North Texas gymnastics instructor Skipper Glenn Crawley was sentenced Friday to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty to four counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Crawley, 53, was an instructor at Sokol Gymnastics in Fort Worth when reports surfaced he had sexually assaulted three young female gymnasts during practices.
After his arrest, several adult victims came forward with their own stories of sexual abuse by Crawley, who assaulted them when they were as young as eight while he was coaching gymnastics in Norman and Tulsa, Oklahoma in the 1990s.
In total, Crawley was charged for abusing 11 girls in Texas and Oklahoma.
"The defendant preyed on his victims from the start," said prosecutor Darren DeLaCruz. "Instead of being a trusted coach and mentor, he sexually abused them."
Once charges were filed against him, Crawley was arrested in Indiana after fleeing Texas.
Many of Crawley's victims faced him in court and shared emotional statements about their own personal experiences.
"They were all children who dreamed of being Olympians, and believed the defendant would help them get there," DeLaCruz said. "He used his position of authority to isolate them, and used their dreams against them."