Jiu jitsu fighter sues Frisco gym and former coach over alleged sexual abuse as teen
A jiu jitsu fighter who trained in Frisco is suing her former coach on allegations he sexually abused her when she was a teenager at a competition in Houston.
The lawsuit filed by Mandy Schneider in Harris County alleges that she met coach Rodrigo da Costa Oliveira when she was 13 and began training at the Rockstar Martial Arts gym in Frisco.
Schneider began competing in jiu jitsu events such as the Submission Hunter Pro 60 competition in Houston.
On Oct. 4, 2020, Oliveira took Schneider — who was 16 at the time — to a competition, the lawsuit says.
“Once the two were at the hotel hundreds of miles away from her family, Oliveira lured Schneider into his room and pressured her to drink alcohol despite the fact that she was a minor,” according to a statement from Simpson Tuegel Law Firm, which is representing Schneider. “He then allegedly suggested they spar, using jiu jitsu training as a pretext to brutally sexually assault her.”
The lawsuit says that after returning from the competition, Schneider confided in Rockstar Martial Arts managers Nicole Bilski and Cody Hudson, who are also defendants in her suit.
Rather than notifying Schneider’s parents and law enforcement, as required by Texas law, they allegedly attempted to conceal what happened, telling her that the assault had been her fault, ordering her to keep quiet and demonstrating “a complete lack of concern for the safety and well-being of Schneider and other minor athletes,” the law firm says.
On Nov. 12, 2020, after Schneider told her parents, her father filed a police report. Oliveira was charged with trafficking a child to engage in sexual conduct, according to the Frisco Police Department. The case was referred to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.
“The betrayal and violation I experienced as a child at the hands of a trusted coach and mentor changed my life forever and altered my perception of the sport I love,” Schneider said in a statement through her lawyer. “But I refuse to let this trauma take away my passion for jiu jitsu and I choose to continue my training as an act of defiance against my trauma. My hope is that my story sparks crucial conversations in the jiu jitsu community about safety, awareness of sexual abuse related to minor athletes and their coaches, and zero tolerance for abuse.”
Also named as defendants are multi-time world champion Roberto “Cyborg” Abreu and the company he manages, Fight Sports LLC. The Frisco gym was affiliated with the company.
