(EL PASO COUNTY, Colo.) — It has been nearly two years since a 14-year-old was sexually assaulted by a family friend in Colorado Springs. Now, that man will be able to walk free by the end of the year since accepting a plea deal.
On May 18, 2023, 50-year-old Anthony Fruzia plead guilty to sexual assault of a minor in a position of trust, which is a class 3 felony. The plea agreement stated the former assistant Boy Scout troop leader will be sentenced to 90 days in jail and 20 years to life of Sex Offender Intensive Supervision Probation (SOISP).
The victim’s father, James Logan, said the sentencing is not strong enough.
“It’s a slap on the hand,” Logan said. “It’s a insult.”
He said his son was sexually assaulted by Fruzia at the Antlers Hotel in December of 2021.
“Tony came up from Texas to spend Christmas with us,” Logan remembered.
Logan and Fruzia had been friends for over 30 years, so he said he had no reason not to trust Fruzia that night. A couple months after the incident, Logan’s son, Nelson, came forward.
“Having the parents that I’ve had, having the support that I’ve had gave me that just kind of little extra ‘oomph’… to talk about it,” Nelson said.
Fruzia was then arrested in Denton County, Texas in February of 2022. Then, on May 18, 2022, he accepted the plea deal, in which he will be sentenced to three months in jail, which is significantly less than the possible four years of imprisonment for a class 3 felony.
“It’s telling the people who live here in Colorado that somebody can come up here, they can molest your child and they will get a slap on the hand,” Logan said.
The 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office stated they have not been able to find any reported cases in Texas against Fruzia, but Logan said Nelson was not Fruzia’s first victim. He said a friend, who was in the same Boy Scout Troop as Fruzia, had concerns after he left.
“He said, ‘had I stayed in that troop, I probably would have been one of his victims’ because there were two people from that same troop that he molested,” Logan said.
In a statement to FOX21, the 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office said:
This is a case where defendant is pleading to the top charge with a stipulation to 20 years to life SOISP and the maximum jail sentence allowed as a condition of probation. (We believe) the low likelihood that the judge would immediately sentence the defendant to an indeterminate prison term given defendant’s lack of criminal history and the single incident we were able to charge.
We have not been able to find any reported cases by other individuals in Texas against the defendant; have limited access to the information within the civil lawsuit; and don’t believe that the information concerning the other individuals in Texas would meet the proof requirements necessary for a 404(b)/Rojasmotion.
In looking through this case, we crafted an agreement that required defendant to be remanded into custody, stay in custody while awaiting the PSIR/PSE, and then would get an additional 90 days CJC as a condition of probation without any credit for time served. In essence that agreement ensures that we obtain approx. 6 months’ worth of incarceration that would otherwise be at the discretion of the judge as well as the maximum length of probation allowed and the likely sentence imposed when we won at trial.
We definitely understand the family’s frustration at the legal system and victim’s father’s desire to protect his son, but this is a situation where we are actively ensuring significant jail time as well as a conviction on the high count for someone who violated the victim and the victim’s father’s trust.
4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office
Nelson said he is thankful he was able to speak up in this incident, and hopes more victims of sexual assault can have the courage to come forward.
“If I didn’t… this would go unspoken just like a million other times with other people. And I didn’t want that. I wanted to show people that you can talk about it. And there is some form of justice that will happen.”
Truzia will be sentenced August 17.
