Chinatown Basketball Coach Charged With Lewd Acts on Teenage Player

LOS ANGELES, CA - A basketball coach at a Chinatown recreation center will be arraigned in downtown Los Angeles Aug. 17 on charges of lewd act upon a teenage boy who played for his team more than a decade ago, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced today.

Tony Wong, 61, of San Gabriel, is charged with 12 counts of lewd act on a child who was 14 or 15.

The criminal complaint alleges that the crimes occurred between January 2004 and August 2004.

Wong, a coach at the Alpine Recreation Center, allegedly began grooming the teen when he was 14 and invited him to play for his team, and the alleged crimes started a year later at the center and in hotel rooms when the team traveled to other cities, according to the District Attorney's Office.

Wong was arrested Wednesday by Los Angeles police and released later that day on a $240,000 bond.

If convicted of the charges, he faces 10 years and eight months in state prison, according to the District Attorney's Office.

— City News Service, photo via Shutterstock