An assistant coach for a local high school basketball team resigned before he could be fired Wednesday for his alleged connection to the attack on a gay couple in Center City.
Police say the man, who has not been officially charged, is a person of interest in last Thursday’s assault on two gay men. Police are in the process of interviewing several persons of interest after they released surveillance video and photos of a group of men and women who may have been involved in the attack.
Authorities identified several persons of interest after a social media firestorm -- led by the well-known @FanSince09 account -- tracked down the possible suspects based on check-ins at a Center City restaurant pictured in an image that showed people similarly dressed to the attackers.
Sources told NBC10 some of the alleged attackers were alumni of Archbishop Wood Catholic High School in Warminster, Pa.
One of the persons of interest resigned his post as an assistant basketball coach at Archbishop Wood after being confronted about the allegations, according to a school spokesman.
School officials said that if he hadn't quit he would have been fired. Original reports were that the unnamed coach was fired rather than resigned.
“He was not a teacher at the school but serving as a coach on a contract basis,” the spokesperson said. “We expect all those who work with students in our schools to model appropriate Christian behavior at all times.”
Archbishop Wood also released a statement earlier Wednesday on the alleged attack:
Earlier today, Archbishop Wood High School became aware that some of its former students were allegedly involved in the assault of two men in Center City last week. This afternoon, administrators communicated with the entire Archbishop Wood school community to make it emphatically clear that the school does not, under any circumstances, tolerate or condone the violent and hateful behavior displayed by those who took part in this senseless attack.
Administration also stressed that Catholic schools are centers of learning where students are expected to treat each other in a Christ-like manner at all times and that everyone deserves to be treated with respect and dignity. The actions of those who took part in the attack are reprehensible and entirely unacceptable. They are not an accurate reflection of our Catholic values or of Archbishop Wood High School.
