Aaron Thomas, former North Kingstown coach, charged with child molestation and sexual assault

Aaron Thomas, the former North Kingstown coach accused of subjecting athletes to naked "fat tests," has been charged with child molestation.

Thomas, 55, faces charges of second-degree child molestation and second-degree sexual assault, according to court records. The charges were filed on Thursday in Washington County Superior Court.

Both charges are felonies. Thomas is scheduled to be arraigned on Aug. 19.

The charges are the result of a joint investigation by the North Kingstown Police Department and the Office of the Rhode Island Attorney General.

In a news release, the attorney general's office said Thomas is accused of engaging in "sexual contact" with two victims while he was employed at North Kingstown High School as a teacher and basketball coach.

The child molestation charge "alleges sexual contact with a person under 14 years of age," the news release said. The inappropriate contact allegedly occurred between Sept. 1, 2000, and Feb. 22, 2002.

The second charge "alleges that the defendant engaged in sexual contact with a second victim by force or coercion or while engaging in the medical treatment of the victim for the purpose of sexual arousal, gratification or stimulation," according to the attorney general's office.

That contact is alleged to have occurred between Sept. 1, 2019, and Feb. 22, 2020.

John MacDonald, the attorney representing Thomas, said in an emailed statement that his client "adamantly denies that any criminal activity took place."

"The sole purpose of the testing program was to better the athletic performance of North Kingstown High School’s student-athletes," he wrote. "Hundreds of student-athletes participated in this program over the course of many years and greatly benefited from it. Mr. Thomas looks forward to his day in court and the opportunity to clear his name."

Thomas quietly left the North Kingstown School District last year. The district is currently facing multiple lawsuits from former students as well as a probe from the U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island over allegations that it failed to respond to complaints about misconduct. Both Supt. Philip Auger and Assistant Supt. Denise Mancieri announced their resignations in March, amid the investigation into Thomas's actions as head basketball coach.

More: New allegations of 'creepy' behavior leveled against two North Kingstown coaches

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Attorney Timothy Conlon, who has filed lawsuits on behalf of the former students, said he represents the two victims in the criminal case.

"It's good to see the process moving forward," he said, adding, "I certainly commend the AG's office for their patience in working through something that has been festering for quite some time."

The joint investigation involved interviewing 30 former students who attended North Kingstown High School from the early 1990s through 2020, as well as teachers, coaches, administrators and medical professionals, according to the attorney general's news release.

The statute of limitations for second-degree sexual assault in Rhode Island is three years, but there is no statute of limitations for second-degree child molestation, the attorney general's office noted.

One of the former students who previously told The Providence Journal that Thomas's naked fat tests had made them uncomfortable described feeling mixed emotions after the criminal charges were announced on Thursday.

"It feels like there’s definitely a little bit of a weight off my shoulders," said the former student, who graduated from North Kingstown High School in the early 2000s. "It makes me feel very happy, honestly."

At the same time, he said, "I just have a lack of trust in people. I just have a lack of faith that the right thing will happen. So I do have this fear in my stomach that he will be found not guilty."

"He’s gotten away with everything for so long," the former student added.

The former student also said there needs to be more accountability for the adults who enabled Thomas' behavior.

"I feel like there were a lot of people in power — whether it’s teachers, guidance counselors, adults in general — that knew about this or heard the rumor," he said. "I still feel like there’s not enough justice yet, but it’s a start."

Thomas began coaching the North Kingstown boys basketball team in the late 1990s, building the Skippers into one of the state's top programs through those 23 seasons. North Kingstown won the state championship in 2019, going 22-3 that season.

After resigning from North Kingstown High after the 2020 season, Thomas worked as a teacher at Monsignor Clarke School in Wakefield for about a month before that school learned about the allegations and fired him.

Interim North Kingstown Supt. Michael Waterman said in an email that the charges "contain very serious allegations of criminal behavior."

"This issue is now properly in the hands of the Rhode Island Attorney General’s office and the judicial system," he said. "My first priority as Interim Superintendent is the safety of all students in our North Kingstown School District. We have taken actions to further support and protect our students, from important changes to existing policies as well the adoption of new District policies designed to ensure all of our students are safe within all of their educational environments."

"Our North Kingstown School Department, North Kingstown School Committee and specifically my office, stands ready to further assist the RI Attorney General and North Kingstown Police who have brought these new charges forward in any way we can."

More to come.

More: Naked fat testing of NK basketball players was 'open secret'. What a blistering report says

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Aaron Thomas, former NK coach, charged with child molestation