WOBURN, Mass. — Seven teens have been charged with attacking a former Woburn Memorial High School football player in a locker room incident recorded on cell phone video after a game last September.
Kevin and Jeanny Coucelos say teammates of their freshman son Johnathan cornered him, threw water at him and punched him before one teen pulled their son’s pants down and groped his genitals.
“Watching that video, it always makes me emotional,” Jeanny said. “Makes me break down.”
“You can hear Johnathan screaming, ‘Stop, stop, stop, stop!’” Kevin added. “It’s trauma. He went through something that no kid should’ve went through, especially [because] he joined the football team. Those were his football players that did that to him.”
Boston 25 News does not identify victims of sexual assault unless given consent. Johnathan, who turned 15 last week, wanted his parents to share his story to prevent it from happening to someone else, the family said.
The Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office said five juveniles have been charged with assault and battery in the locker room incident, with one of those teens also charged with indecent assault and battery. Another two students have been charged with assault and battery for a subsequent incident.
Johnathan claims classmates continued to assault and harass him after he reported the locker room incident.
In one instance, a teammate threatened via text, “You really want to get raped again, don’t you?,” according to a screen shot of a conversation on Johnathan’s phone.
While the Couceloses are glad charges have been filed, they believe they should have come sooner and more should have been done.
“It was somewhat of a relief,” Coucelos said of learning of the charges. “But it really isn’t, because you know what? There’s a lot more people that should be held accountable for it. That whole locker room. There was over 20 kids in that locker room.”
Kevin and Jeanny want additional students charged. They are also pushing for change in policy at the high school and consequences for coaching and school staff they claim didn’t do anything after their son reported the first alleged attack.
“I want everything to change in the school,” Jeanny said. “I want actual people who are going to care about the children’s safety.”
Woburn Public Schools said in a statement it “takes this matter seriously and is treating it with the utmost sincerity and gravity,” adding that they have hired outside counsel to conduct a Title IX investigation and an administrative review and policy analysis.
“We pledge to be forthcoming regarding the results of those investigations and pledge to enact their findings and recommendations to the extent we are permitted by law,” the statement released by Superintendent Matthew Crowley says. “However, as these investigations remain active and ongoing, we must allow that process to unfold and cannot offer more information until we complete the Title IX process and receive the vital findings of the administrative review.”
Johnathan has transferred to another school and joined the baseball team. While he is doing better in a new environment, his parents say he is traumatized and withdrawn, spending a lot of time alone in his bedroom.
“He thinks he’s not safe, he can’t trust nobody,” his father said.
“Johnathan goes through a roller coaster,” Jeanny added. “At one moment, he’s fine giggling. The next minute he’s alone and by himself. It’s very hard.”
The Couceloses say they plan to sue the school district and the city for $750,000.
Woburn police declined to comment on the case, referring Boston 25 News to the district attorney’s office.
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