GREENWOOD, Ind. — The Greenwood Police Department is investigating a report of a child being fondled by a stranger at Greenwood Little League.
A parent reported the crime at the ball fields, which are along Washington Street, directly across from the Greenwood police station.
Now other parents are worried a potential predator is on the loose.
They’re also concerned about how the Little League is handling the situation, asking parents not to talk about it publicly.
The alleged danger near the dugout happened during a busy baseball game Saturday. Graysen Gracey was there with her kids.
"I knew something was going on because I took my son to that bathroom,” Gracey said. “I saw three men with officers and I did hear them giving a description of someone, so at that point I knew that they were trying to identify someone and I knew something was wrong."
Just moments earlier, police say another parent told officers his son went into the restroom after an inning. Dad later followed and he witnessed a man fondling his son, touching him inappropriately at a urinal.
"Dad asked the man, 'What are you doing?' and reportedly the gentleman said, 'The little boy asked me for help, so I was helping him',” said Greenwood Assistant Police Chief Matt Fillenwarth. "The father said he was actually touching the boy's genitals supposedly in an attempt to help him use the urinal."
"I can't imagine what he must have felt at that moment, you know, walking in on that with his child,” Gracey said.
"You would think that of all places that your child would be safe to go and use the restroom,” added parent Vickie Pittman.
Officers canvassed the area but couldn't find the man described to be between 50 and 60 years old and wearing a blue long-sleeve shirt, red hat and khaki pants.
There are no security cameras at the ball fields, so police hope someone who went to the game and took pictures or video may have captured the potential predator.
“It’s very, very scary. Very concerning,” Pittman said.
Greenwood Little League president Andy Elliott shared this message with 13News, saying they’re improving safety:
"We are aware of this incident and are cooperating fully with authorities in their investigation. If you have any further questions about it, please reach out to the Greenwood Police Department. We are working on improving our facilities to ensure the safety of all people present. At this time, it is premature to talk about any security improvements because nothing has been finalized yet."
But the league also told families in a Facebook post not to talk about or discuss the incident publicly. For many moms and dads, keeping a possible crime silent didn't sit well. They say there’s a difference between not sharing a victim’s name and not sharing the reported danger at all with the public.
"I don't think, you know, keeping it hush-hush is the answer to this," Pittman said. "We need, everyone needs, to be made aware. The more awareness there is, the more eyes can be on the lookout in case this man does it again.”
"Now is a good as time as ever to come together as a community for the kids to make sure that nothing like this happens again,” Gracey added.
Another parent, Megan Britnell, shared this statement with 13News:
"As a concerned parent and someone who works in the social work field, I am extremely concerned that GLL told GLL parents to not talk about this publicly. Awareness is so important, especially in this type of situation. I feel like it should go without saying, but respecting the victim’s and their family’s privacy is nonnegotiable, their privacy should absolutely be respected. Letting other families know of situations like this is absolutely necessary in order to ensure the safety of other children. Because we don’t know much about the perpetrator, it is even more imperative for parents to be aware of the potential risks. We don’t know if he’s done this before, but without the awareness surrounding what has recently happened, this man’s disgusting behavior is very likely to happen again. In the field I work in, I see the heart-breaking repercussions and lifelong struggles that victims of sexual assault and sexual abuse endure."
Greenwood police have added extra patrols. They ask anyone with information on the reported fondling case to contact them.
The incident is still under investigation by the Greenwood Police Department.