Hilton Head visitor says man sexually assaulted his son. He’s not pressing charges

A Hilton Head Island man was charged with public disorderly conduct Monday after he was accused of sexually assaulting a minor in a resort swimming pool.

The incident was reported around 9:40 p.m. at the Coral Sands Resort on Hilton Head, according to a Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office report.

The alleged victim’s father met with a deputy and said he was on vacation with his family from Canada. The family was in a pool when an unknown man entered the pool and started to play catch with them, the report said.

After around 10 or 15 minutes, the father saw the man and his son in the corner of the pool by themselves. When the father went over to see what was going on, the man moved away.

He then asked his son if everything was alright, and his son said the unknown man put his hand down his pants, the report said.

The father then told the man not to go anywhere and called 911.

When deputies arrived, the victim said he was alone in the corner of the pool with the man who was talking to him.

The child said the only thing he could understand the suspect say was “five minutes.”

The remainder of the child’s statement to deputies was redacted from the report aside from when his father came over to see what was going on and the man moved away.

When a deputy asked the man what happened, he “responded by crying,” the report said.

The man then attempted to stand up and lost his balance, the report said.

“(The man) had the strong odor of consumed alcohol coming from his person, and could not maintain his balance,” a deputy wrote.

The child’s father declined to press charges because he would not be available for future court appearances, the report said. The man told deputies that he just wanted to make law enforcement aware of what allegedly happened so that the man “did not do it again.”

The deputy was unable to get information from the man “due to his intoxicated state,” the report said. The man was taken to the Beaufort County Detention Center and charged with disorderly conduct.

The Island Packet does not typically name those charged or accused of misdemeanor crimes.

This story was originally published January 10, 2018 at 1:57 PM with the headline "Hilton Head visitor says man sexually assaulted his son. He’s not pressing charges."