PORTLAND, OR (KPTV) -
A Portland youth basketball coach is facing charges of kidnapping and assault following an incident involving one of his players at a northwest Portland apartment.
Jerome Lewis, a coach for Above The Rim Basketball League, was arrested Sunday after officers responded to a report of a teenage boy being locked in a room and yelling, "Help me!"
When officers arrived at the apartment at 610 N.W. Davis St., a witness pointed them to the room where the noise originated. Police knocked on the door, and Lewis answered.
Based on the officers' observations as they made contact with Lewis, police took him into custody and detectives from the Multnomah County Child Abuse Team were called in to take over the investigation.
According to court documents obtained by Fox 12, the boy, 13, told detectives his coach took him to his apartment and whipped him with a belt about 40 times. The boy told police he tried to escape, but then was put in a headlock.
The court documents also say the alleged victim stated Lewis photographed his bare buttocks and genitals, following the whipping.
Detectives booked Lewis into jail on the following charges: first-degree kidnapping, second-degree assault, first-degree criminal mistreatment, using a child in display of sexually explicit conduct and interfering with making a police report.
Lewis pleaded not guilty during his first court appearance Monday afternoon.
The 13-year-old victim was safely removed from the apartment and didn't suffer any serious injuries, police said.
Police said they're concerned Lewis may have more victims based on his coaching and mentoring through the Above The Rim Basketball League in Portland. The league would often use the basketball courts in northeast Portland's Woodlawn Park.
Anyone with information about the case or possible victims is asked to contact Detective Mace Winter at mace.winter@portlandoregon.gov.
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