A Naperville-area soccer coach charged with sexually assaulting a former player and suspected in another alleged assault will plead not guilty, his attorney indicated Wednesday in court.
Although the purpose of the hearing was to give Gustavo Nicosia’s attorney a chance to request a lower bail, the attorney instead notified the judge that his client intends to plead not guilty to all charges.
Nicosia, 36, of Oswego, was expected to post $50,000 cash, or 10 percent of his $500,000 bail, Wednesday evening and be released from the Will County Jail. He must surrender his passport and no longer coach a soccer team of teenage girls.
Will County Judge Robert C. Lorz said Nicosia would be allowed to continue coaching three teams of teenage boys.
“This gentleman is presumed innocent of these charges, and we will have to come up with some accommodation for protection of the public and maintaining his presumption of innocence,” Lorz said.
Nicosia, charged with 14 felony counts of criminal sexual assault, aggravated criminal sexual abuse and obstruction of justice in the abuse of a 15-year-old Naperville girl between fall 2004 and spring 2005, appeared via closed-circuit television.
The victim was discovered during a criminal investigation that began after another Naperville girl told her youth pastor that Nicosia had sexually abused her from 2002 to 2004 when she was 14 and 15 years old, police said. Nicosia has not been charged in the other alleged assault.
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Police said Nicosia assaulted his victims at athletic fields throughout the Naperville area and in his car while traveling to events.
“We are appalled by what was going on,” said Angelo DiBernardo, vice president of America’s Soccer Club. “If we had known anything, we would have acted accordingly.”
DiBernardo said the club first learned of the allegations when Naperville police contacted it in September.
“At that point we cooperated with authorities. We gave them any information they requested,” DiBernardo said.
One of Nicosia’s ex-players said he was popular for his knowledge of the game and professionalism.
“Everyone is real shocked by it. It doesn’t seem like anything he would do,” said Maggie Christensen, 18, of Orland Park. Now a freshman at Eastern Michigan University, she played for him for one season at America’s Soccer Club in Naperville.
Police believe there may be other victims and the investigation is continuing, said Naperville Police Lt. Dave Hoffman.
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