A former 24 Hour Fitness employee was convicted of indecent exposure following an incident involving a 5-year-old boy that occurred last year in the club’s child-care center.
Pornthep Suvanasarn was found guilty last Thursday by a jury after a two-week trial, the Contra Costa (CA) Times reported. Suvanasarn had worked at the front desk and child care center at a 24 Hour club in Moraga, CA, the newspaper reported.
The incident took place on March 14, 2011. The charges of indecent exposure and annoying or molesting a child involved both a 5-year-old boy and an unrelated 5-year-old girl. The jury found Suvanasarn guilty of two charges related to the boy but acquitted him of the remaining two charges related to the girl, his attorney told the newspaper.
24 Hour says Suvanasarn was placed on leave when the allegations were first made, and upon learning of his conviction, it terminated his employment. The company is referring all questions related to the case to the Moraga Police Department.
“The safety and security of our members and their families are top priorities for 24 Hour Fitness,” the company said in a statement released to Club Industry. “We are incredibly saddened by this occurrence and extend our deepest condolences to the victim and his family. We view the allegations as deplorable, and they in no way reflect our company’s values.”
Suvanasarn, who will have to register as a sex offender, will be sentenced Aug. 13. His punishment ranges from probation to a year in jail, according to the newspaper.
In other news, the Contra Costa Times reports that police have arrested an Oakland man for a shooting incident that took place earlier this month in the parking lot of a 24 Hour club in San Leandro, CA. 24 Hour says no one was seriously hurt and is referring all questions related to the case to the San Leandro Police Department.