A 38-year-old man who served as a coach and board member for the Little Miss Kickball Laguna League in Corpus Christi was taken into custody Sunday on charges connected to child grooming and online solicitation of a minor.
Harry Wallace Grabowske is being held on bond set at $150,000, according to court records reviewed by local news outlets.
The arrest follows a civil lawsuit filed earlier this month in Nueces County on behalf of a 14-year-old girl who played in the youth sports league.
The suit names Grabowske as the defendant and claims he used his standing within the organization, where he held roles as coach, board member, and rules director, to build an improper relationship with the teenager.
What the Lawsuit Claims
According to the petition, the girl and her family had been part of the league for multiple seasons before the alleged misconduct came to light.
Court filings state that Grabowske reached out to the girl through social media, text messages, and phone calls over a span of several months.
The family says they were unaware of the extent of contact until earlier in June, when the girl’s parents found messages between her and the coach.
Once the communications were discovered, the parents reported the situation to the police and turned over digital evidence, including screenshots and message logs, to the investigators. That evidence reportedly played a role in building the criminal case that led to Sunday’s arrest.
The lawsuit goes further than the criminal allegations, claiming that Grabowske sent the teenager money and that his actions caused her significant emotional and psychological harm.
Attorneys representing the girl are pursuing damages exceeding $1 million, arguing that Grabowske violated the trust placed in him as an adult authority figure within a youth athletic program.
The civil filing cites Texas statutes covering breach of fiduciary trust in youth organizations as well as intentional infliction of emotional distress. The plaintiff’s legal team contends that his position gave him access and credibility that he then exploited.
League Response and Ongoing Case
Before the arrest, league officials had already pulled Grabowske from his coaching and board duties once the allegations surfaced, according to the lawsuit.
An earlier report from local station KIII-TV noted that the league suspended him and opened its own internal review while law enforcement conducted a separate investigation.
It’s worth noting these are allegations laid out in a civil petition, and as of now, none of the claims have been tested or proven in a courtroom. Court records did not show any formal response or statement from Grabowske or his attorney at the time the case was reviewed.
The criminal charges against him stem from a separate process tied to the Nueces County Sheriff’s Office and local prosecutors, who moved forward with the arrest after reviewing evidence gathered during the investigation.
It remains unclear when Grabowske is expected to appear before a judge on the criminal charges, though the civil case is still pending in Nueces County Court.
The story has drawn attention across South Texas, especially among families involved in youth sports leagues, many of whom rely heavily on volunteer coaches and board members to keep programs like Little Miss Kickball running.
Cases like this one tend to raise broader questions about screening and oversight for adults who work closely with children in community athletics, even though no broader policy changes have been announced by the league at this time.
