A five-year-old boy was sexually assaulted by four of his kindergarten classmates at his elementary school in New York, his mother has claimed.
Yenny Valero claimed the assault to her son took place in the school’s restroom a few weeks before the end of the last academic year.
“You never expect this to happen to your child,” Yenny Valero said.
Valero said their ordeal began when her son went to the bathroom on June 11.
Four boys, all 6 or 7 years old, held him down, removed his pants and inserted at least one finger into his anus, according to the legal papers filed.
The young victim, who wears ankle braces because of balance issues, suffered physical injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder, the filing states.
“He’s already started seeing a psychologist,” said Valero’s lawyer Sean Serpe. “He’s having nightmares, gender identification issues.”
The boy told his mother and her sister about the attack the next day, saying he had been bullied by the students in the past.
“I couldn’t believe this was happening to my son,” said Valero, 30. “I thought I was living a nightmare.”
The mother called 311, which put her in touch with the city’s Administration for Children’s Services and an NYPD special victims squad detective, who investigated the alleged assault.
Because her son only had one week left of class, she kept him out of school, but said she spoke to the assistant principal on June 16 about the incident.
“They said they didn’t know anything about it and that they would investigate,” Valero said.
She said she still has not heard from the city Education Department about the outcome of the investigation, but the four alleged attackers were allowed to attend kindergarten graduation.
“They said they couldn’t suspend anyone because the investigation wasn’t over,” Valero said.
Her son didn’t attend the graduation and has since gotten a safety transfer to another school.
According to police sources, detectives investigated the incident, but the criminal case was closed because of the young ages of the students.
Yenny Valero’s lawyer told reporters he was shocked that none of the boys has been brought to justice.
“Basically, you’ve got four monsters out there who are getting a free pass,” he said. “They haven’t even been required to receive therapy for their actions.”
