Former Wichita YMCA employee pleads no contest to raping girls in Kid Zone

A former YMCA worker charged with raping two children in the Kid Zone has changed his plea.

Caleb Wayne Gaston pleaded no contest to two counts of rape on Thursday, district attorney’s office spokesman Dan Dillon said.

Pleading no contest to criminal charges means the defendant does not admit guilt in the case, but acknowledges that the court would have found him guilty if it had gone to trial, Dillon said. Sentencing is scheduled for April 26 before Judge Steven Ternes.

Gaston, 22, had previously pleaded not guilty in the case after prosecutors originally charged him with raping a 4-year-old girl and with aggravated indecent liberties for allegedly fondling a 3-year-old girl.

Both alleged incidents occurred in January 2018 in the Kid Zone of the downtown Wichita branch of the YMCA. The Kid Zone is a place where parents can leave young children while they take classes or exercise.

Gaston had been a part-time YMCA employee for five years and was a caregiver on the staff. He was arrested after a parent reported her daughter had been molested. A Wichita police detective reviewing security camera footage then discovered a second incident.

The Greater Wichita YMCA later announced that it was adding security cameras and changing polices in response to the case.

Gaston has been held in the Sedgwick County Jail in lieu of a $1.1 million bond since his second arrest on Feb. 7, 2018, sheriff’s office records show.

This story was originally published March 1, 2019 at 5:25 PM.