Knoxville Police are investigating an incident at the downtown YMCA where a boy said a man tried to grab him in the shower.
The incident happened Sunday afternoon in the men's locker room.
“A young man – there was an attempt to assault him in our shower area,” said Jim Dickson, president and CEO of the YMCA of East Tennessee. “Luckily, he had friends and family there that stopped that from happening.”
Dickson said the man reached under the shower stall, and the victim slapped his hand away, and chased him out.
“I would say it could have been much worse, and it was definitely an assault,” said Dickson. “Something that has traumatized the young man, and rightfully so.”
Knoxville Police were unable to release the incident report, citing “the nature of the complaint and that the alleged victim is a juvenile.”
“No arrests have been made or warrants issued at this time,” said KPD spokesperson Darrell Debusk. “The investigation is continuing.”
The suspect has been identified, Dickson said. The YMCA is cooperating fully with KPD investigators.
Dickson noted that in an effort to keep predators out of their properties, all members and program participants are checked monthly against a national database.
“That actually happened last Friday and we had no one flagged as being a predator,” Dickson said.
Going forward, the Y plans to continue to evaluate its security procedures.
“We want to do everything we can to make sure we're providing a safe and family oriented place for people to come,” he added.