Jonathan and Angela Ryker. (Image and mugshot: Medford Township Police Department)
Prosecutors charged a New Jersey cheerleading coach for allegedly abusing teenage girls, and also charged his mother with allegedly telling one of the victims to recant, according to reports.
Jonathan P. Ryker, 25, is charged with sexual assault, endangering the welfare of a child, and aggravated criminal sexual conduct. His mother, Angela Ryker, 51, is charged with witness tampering and criminal attempt.
The Medford Township Police Department said Jonathan Ryker sent a minor explicit content through social media.
Shirtless and lying in bed, Ryker allegedly took a selfie and sent it to a 15-year-old cheerleader on Snapchat, stated court documents obtained by WPVI. He asked for what the outlet described as "sexual favors." The girl allegedly also said he groped her during practice.
"During the 8-month investigation, detectives were able to identify additional victims associated with Rockstar Cheer of Southampton, NJ where Ryker was a coach," officers said.
Another girl, 17, a gymnast under his supervision, reportedly stepped forward to cops. She said that in February 2022, Ryker picked her up from home and took her to a hotel room for sex.
"At one point, he is holding her neck against the bed, and she was pushing him off because she could not breathe," the probable cause affidavit reportedly stated. "She thought to herself that he was going to kill her."
As allegedly heard in a court-approved wiretap, Jonathan Ryker told the girl in February to say she was 18 during the incident and to omit "the first time they had sexual intercourse."
Angela Ryker, who reportedly started Rock Royalty Cheer in March 2023, allegedly reached out to one of the girls in September 2022, telling her to recant.
"My daughter is one of the Ryker survivors," the mother of the younger girl told Law&Crime in a statement. "The pain our family has endured by the abuser's mother Angel Ryker during our time cooperating with the NJ State Police was horrific. She sent our 15 year old daughter's photo to other adults in our community calling her crazy and a liar. We will not be scared by Angel Ryker. We are grateful to Detectives Hippe and Samalonis with the NJ State Police for the last 7 months of work and for charging Angel Ryker with felony witness tampering. We are not going away- we will make sure the 5 felony charges Jon Ryker is in jail for result in the strongest penalty allowed. No child should endure abuse, and no child should be the target of seven months of attacks by their abuser's mother after the fact."
RockStar Cheer, the company that Jonathan Ryker worked for, said they fired him when allegations surfaced. They are now known as Access Cheer. This was one of many cheer gyms that got rid of the RockStar name last year after Scott Foster, founder of the original RockStar Cheer and Dance in South Carolina, died by suicide while under federal investigation. Former students said he sexually abused them.
"We are aware of the arrest of former coach Jonathan Ryker," Access Cheer spokesperson Kim Brubeck told Law&Crime in a statement. "We removed Jonathan Ryker immediately from the Access Cheer facility upon receipt of the initial allegations in September 2022. We immediately reported what we knew to law enforcement and the United States Allstar Federation. The USASF then placed Ryker on their temporary banned list. We are grateful to the NJ State Police for their commitment to the children of our state and we continue to work with them through this ongoing criminal matter. We stand with all survivors of abuse and will continue to create the safest and most consistent place possible for children to compete in allstar cheerleading."
Rock Royalty Cheer could not be immediately reached for comment.
From cops:
If you or anyone you know may have been a victim, please contact the New Jersey State Police Red Lion Station at 609-859-2282, the Medford Township Police Department at 609-654-7511 or the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office at 609-265-5035. Anonymous tips are welcomed.
Note: We added a full statement from Access Cheer, a statement from the mother of the younger girl, and some information on Foster.
