A former Rhode Island cheerleading coach and 'team mother' has been arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a girl "almost daily" for two years when the child was 12 years old, according to authorities. Alyshia Tkacs, 33, was arrested on Friday and has been charged with seven counts of child molestation, according to East Providence police.
Tkacs was arrested after the alleged victim, who is now an adult, opened up about being molested regularly by her two months ago. Following that, police launched an investigation and arrested Tcacs. The sexual assault happened almost a decade ago. She is being held without bond until a hearing on Thursday.
Unlike a Coach
Tkacs was a coach for a competitive cheering company, East Providence police Lt. Michael Rapoza told ABC-6. She was a "team mother" at the Superior Cheer All Stars gym when the alleged abuse took place, the former gym owner told WLNE. The facility closed in 2018.
She was arrested after a month-long investigation into the abuse that took place over a two-year period beginning in 2012 when the victim was between 12 and 14 years old, cops said.
The girl, who is now an adult, allegedly told the police that Tkacs abused her almost every day for two years, according to criminal documents acquired by the Providence Journal. From 2012 to 2014, the girl participated in Tkacs' competitive cheering program.
"The victim reported that the sexual assaults occurred in East Providence and Barrington, R.I. during the two-year period and occurred almost daily," Lt. Michael Rapoza said.
The gym where the incident happened said that they didn't know anything about the two-year sexual assault on the girl.
"I do know (redacted) did not want Alyshia with (redacted) but later learned (redacted) continued to meet her at a park where Alyshia gave (redacted) gifts," the gym owner, Dawn Castonguay, said in a statement.
"Never thought it was a molestation thing since they were still hanging out after they both left the gym."
Gone Unnoticed
Tkacs' crime would have gone unnoticed had the alleged victim not come forward two months back. The Barrington Police Department said that they are now looking into possible crimes that might have happened in its community.
A grand jury indicted Tkacs on the seven child molestation charges. According to authorities, she was arrested at her Cranston residence. She will be detained without bail, the judge ruled.
Tkacs was employed by the Care New England Health System, a network of hospitals in Rhode Island, until her arrest. She has been disciplined awaiting the conclusion of the investigation, the hospital said in a statement to WPRI-TV.
"Care New England conducted background checks prior to employment and those were clean," the statement reads. "She has been suspended indefinitely without pay and denied access to our campus. We take the care and safety of our community very seriously, so we immediately took action when notified."
Veronica Seavey, who attended nursing school with Tkacs, expressed her shock at the allegations to WJAR in Providence. "It just didn't seem like something that she would do and she had a daughter who is that age," she told the news station.
