Charges say how former KU volunteer volleyball coach allegedly kept stolen underwear
The stolen women’s underwear was kept, meticulously organized, in storage containers labeled with the names of current and former University of Kansas volleyball players, according to prosecutors.
The storage containers allegedly belonged to Skyler Nicholas Yee, 23, a former volunteer assistant volleyball coach accused of stealing the items in a series of burglaries.
Yee is charged in Douglas County District Court with 15 counts of burglary, theft and criminal damage to property. New details of the allegations were revealed this week with the release of a probable cause affidavit.
Prosecutors said they think the thefts were sexually motivated. If convicted, Yee would have to register as a sex offender.
Yee served as a volunteer assistant coach for the KU volleyball team from 2016 to 2018. He previously had been a manager for the team.
He resigned in mid-January, according to the KU Athletics Department.
Yee had previously coached for a local youth volleyball team, according to court records.
Several KU volleyball players reported to police that they had been burglary victims. Items stolen included their underwear, swimsuit bottoms, socks, shoes and other clothing.
The break-ins occurred on four different dates at two different addresses in Lawrence. They allegedly took place on: December 15, 2017; March 18, 2018; December 31, 2018; and January 1, 2019, according to court records.
A break-in was reported in March by man who is identified in court records as Dedric Lawson. The man said a burglary occurred while he was dog-sitting for his friend that was out of town. The Star was not able to confirm on Thursday whether the man was the KU basketball player of the same name.
Investigators tracked down surveillance video that showed Yee driving a 2019 Hyundai Sonata that had been loaned to him while his car was being serviced. Yee allegedly had the car from Dec. 27 through Jan. 14, when several of the burglaries were reported.
The car’s built-in tracking system showed it had been at several of the locations where the burglaries were reported, and at a Walmart in Lawrence, where investigators obtained surveillance video of a person later identified as Yee, according to the charges.
Police searching Yee’s home found several storage containers, including one with about 39 separate drawers, and an ottoman with built-in storage space, according to the affidavit.
Several individual drawers had names written on the front of them.
Underwear was stored in the compartments, labeled with the names of current and former KU volleyball players and a player connected to a local youth volleyball club, according to police.
While taking photos of the room, investigators noticed several posters on the bedroom wall that had been autographed by current and former KU volleyball players.
The names of several players that autographed the posters were also listed on drawers and compartments of the storage container, according to the affidavit.
This story was originally published February 21, 2019 at 5:11 PM.
