Former Michigan State gymnastics coach Kathie Klages is facing two criminal charges in Ingham County related to the Larry Nassar sexual abuse scandal.
The Michigan Attorney General's Office charged Klages with two counts of lying to investigators on Thursday.
A press release from the AG's office explains the charges:
"While investigating how Larry Nassar was able to get away with sexually assaulting hundreds of individuals on and off Michigan State’s campus, Klages denied to Michigan State Police detectives having been told prior to 2016 of Nassar’s sexual misconduct. Witnesses have said that they reported Nassar’s sexual abuse to Klages dating back more than 20 years. "
Two women have filed court documents claiming they told Klages of Nassar's abuse as far back as the 1990s, but that she never reported the abuse. During the AG investigation into the scandal, the former coach denied ever receiving reports of abuse.
Former MSU youth camp attendee Larissa Boyce told Michigan Radio in a 2017 interview that she told Klages of Nassar's actions 20 years ago.
"And she just couldn't believe it and said that I must be misunderstanding it or reading into what he was doing, and I said, 'I wasn't,'" Boyce said.
Read more: MSU’s opportunity: Use Nassar to teach how abuse gets missed
Klages retired from the MSU gymnastics program a day after the school suspended her in February 2017. She was the team's head coach for 27 years.
A warrant has been issued for Klages' arrest.
