A hearing was postponed until Dec. 22 for a gymnastics instructor accused of inappropriately touching girls at a Plymouth gymnastics academy. Gergely Deli, 37, of Rockford, appeared in court briefly Tuesday in front of Hennepin County District Judge Patricia Kerr Karasov, who reminded him not to drink alcohol or take non-prescription drugs. He must check in regularly with probation and is subject to random drug testing.
Deli is accused of slipping his hands under one girl's leotard about four times "when spotting her during handstands," according to a criminal complaint. Two other girls also claimed that he placed his fingers under their leotards. When a fellow instructor claimed to have seen Deli touch a girl's vagina over her clothes as she stretched and confronted him about it, he is alleged to have attributed the incident to carpal tunnel syndrome, the charges state. Two girls interviewed by CornerHouse -- a nonprofit that works with allegedly abused children -- said that Deli told them, too, that he was having trouble with one of his hands. But the two noted that he used both hands when touching their private areas. Deli is free on bail.
ROCHELLE OLSON
