Former Monmouth County, NJ, Youth Sports Coach Gets 56 Years For Sex Crimes Against Student

A former youth tennis instructor recently convicted at trial of numerous sex crimes committed against a student will be spending the next several decades in prison.

32-year-old Terry Y. Kuo of Colts Neck has been sentenced to 56 1/2 years behind bars and he must serve at least 85-percent of his term, or about 48 years, before becoming eligible for parole.

The Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office says an investigation was initiated after one of Kuo's students alleged that he had engaged in various instances of sexual misconduct on multiple occasions from August 2016 through November 2017, starting when she was 12.

A subsequent investigation resulted in the recovery of digital files containing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on the defendant’s electronic devices, as well as evidence of sexual crimes committed against the victim.

Leveraging the digital and physical evidence, as well as witness testimony – including from the victim – the State proved that Kuo showered her with increasingly pricey gifts such as expensive electronics, jewelry, and designer clothing and accessories while coercing her into engaging in sexual activity with him.

Kuo was arrested in Marlboro in November 2017 and initially indicted in February 2018. Superseding indictments were filed upon the recovery and review of additional evidence, in December 2018 and January 2023, before the trial began in September.

In all, the jury found Kuo guilty of the following charges:

• Two counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault
• First-degree endangering the welfare of a child via manufacture of child sexual abuse materials
• First-degree kidnapping
• 3 counts of second-degree sexual assault
• Second-degree endangering via manufacture of child sexual abuse materials
• Third-degree aggravated criminal sexual contact
• Third-degree endangering via possession of child sexual abuse materials
• Third-degree endangering via engaging in sexual conduct
• Third-degree obscenity
• Fourth-degree criminal sexual contact
• Fourth-degree conspiracy to commit evidence tampering

A judge denied Kuo's motion for a new trial before sentencing him on Friday.

Kuo will be in his 70s by the time he becomes eligible for parole after which he will be subject to parole supervision for life, he must register as a sex offender under Megan’s Law, and he will be under a permanent restraining order from having contact with the victim.