need to know
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Ushay Marquis Nixon, 21, has been charged with aggravated lewdness and attempted sexual assault of a child after an NFL game on Dec. 14.
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The civil suit alleges Nixon pulled down the boy’s pants and tried to molest him.
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The boy’s parents say a good Samaritan helped identify Nixon, who police later admitted was working restroom duty that day.
The parents of an 8-year-old boy are suing after an NFL stadium employee tried to sexually assault their son in a bathroom during a Houston Texans game last month.
The lawsuit, filed Jan. 12 in Harris County, Texas, alleges that 21-year-old Ushay Marquis Nixon pulled down the boy’s pants and tried to molest him during the Texans’ Dec. 14 game against the Arizona Cardinals at NRG Stadium.
Nixon, Aramark Sports & Entertainment Services of Texas, LLC and ASM Global Parent Inc. are named as defendants in the civil complaint, Houston Public Media reported.
According to court records cited by the outlets, the boy was attending his first NFL game with his family. His mother took him to the men’s restroom in third quarter and waited outside.
The child later emerged with his pants fixed.
As the family returned to their seats, a bystander approached the boy’s mother and said she saw her son inside the restroom with an adult employee and the interaction “didn’t seem right,” according to the lawsuit cited by the outlet.
After his parents questioned him, the boy said that a man had pulled his pants.
The boy’s father then brought him back to the bathroom, where the boy identified Nixon as his alleged attacker. According to court records cited by USA Today, Nixon allegedly ran and hid inside a storage room before being apprehended by police.
In a forensic interview with Houston police a few days later, the boy said the man directed him to enter a toilet stall.
Inside the locked stall, the man allegedly pulled down his own clothes before pulling down the boy’s pants and underwear, prompting the child to flee, according to court documents cited by USA Today and Click2Houston.
According to court records cited by USA Today and Click2Houston, surveillance footage showed a man later identified as Nixon, wearing a purple polo shirt, entering and exiting the restroom during the alleged incident.
Per Click2 Houston, Nixon allegedly later told police he was working restroom duty that day and asked the boy if he wanted to see his Pokemon card collection, but the boy got scared and ran away, USA Today reported.
Robbie J. Barrett – AMA/Getty
Harris County court records cited by the outlets show that Nixon is charged with felony indecency with a child and attempted aggravated sexual abuse of a child under 14. He remains in jail in Harris County awaiting a court hearing scheduled for Feb. 5.
His criminal defense attorney could not be reached for comment at press time.
The boy’s mother told USA TODAY that her son had night terrors after the incident and asked, “Why did God let this happen to me?” She asked questions like
“I feel like a failure,” the child’s father told Click2 Houston. “I know there was nothing else I could have done. I did everything I thought was right by you, but you have to protect your children and I failed that day.”
The family’s attorney, Anna Greenberg, said in a statement that the child went to his first NFL game expecting excitement and joy “and instead he was targeted by an employee who should not be allowed anywhere near children,” Houston Public Media reported.
The lawsuit alleges that Aramark was negligent in hiring Nixon and claims that both Aramark and ASM Global failed to provide a safe environment at NRG Stadium.
Court records cited by Houston Public Media and Click2Houston show Nixon was charged in 2022 with indecency with a child and indecent assault, though those charges were later dismissed.
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In a statement, Aramark said it is aware of a “very disturbing situation,” Nixon is no longer employed by the company, and that it is cooperating fully with authorities, Houston Public Media and Click2Houston reported.
ASM Global did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Houston police are asking anyone with information about this case to contact the department’s Special Victims Unit.
Read the original article on People