UPDATED May 9 with more information about Texas Coastal Academy.
Former Rockport teacher Joshua Nguyen and his twin brothers are being sued for allegedly raping a girl while she was a student in Nguyen’s after-school maritime program.
Nguyen was arrested in December 2025 and charged with sexual assault of a child and improper relationship between educator and student.
From 2022 through 2025, Nguyen was a maritime science teacher at Rockport-Fulton High School and director of a local maritime vocational program he founded called Texas Coastal Academy.
Through those programs, Nguyen had contact with students off campus, after school hours, and during the summer.
According to a lawsuit filed May 1 in an Aransas County district court, one of Nguyen’s students and academy members was groomed by Nguyen then continuously sexually abused and statutorily raped by the teacher and his twin brothers, Brandon and Brennen Nguyen.
The lawsuit, filed by the minor girl’s parents on her behalf, alleges the abuse occurred from 2023 through 2025 at multiple locations, starting when the girl was 14 or 15 years old and continuing until she was 17.
In addition to the three Nguyen brothers, the suit names Rockport-Fulton Independent School District, Rockport-Fulton High School Principal Jodi Carter, and Texas Coastal Academy (TCA) as defendants.
TCA is a nonprofit started by Joshua Nguyen, Jeffery Hutt, and Andrew Kane. Current TCA board members are Kane, Jeff’ Hutt’s wife Christy Hutt, and Susan Ocker. Matthew Ocker, Susan’s husband, is Nguyen’s attorney. Matt Ocker is also chair of the Aransas County Appraisal District—a position formerly held by Jeff Hutt.
Houston trial attorney Tony Buzbee is representing the plaintiffs.
The claims are for actions and inaction that occurred after September 1, 2025—the date a new law took effect that waives immunity from civil liability if a school district’s gross negligence enables school employees to sexually abuse students.
The complaint states that the girl joined TCA in 9th grade. Josh Nguyen’s academy operated as an after-school program using Rockport-Fulton ISD property with the district’s permission.
Her parents describe how Nguyen “established a false sense of security” with them while “increasingly isolating” the girl from others—classic grooming behavior.
The girl eventually told her parents the full extent of the abuse and how she was pressured into sexual acts by the brothers. This was after law enforcement confronted her in December 2025 with information from a third-party whistleblower.
The complaint details how Josh Nguyen initiated the grooming process under the guise of “mentorship,” often offering to drive her places and inviting her to outings.
Throughout the spring and summer of 2025, Nguyen allegedly sexually assaulted the girl in a cabin while on a camping trip, in his home, and elsewhere, resulting in “recurring pregnancy scares” attributed specifically to the three Nguyen brothers.
In September 2025, the girl told her parents she wanted to drop her maritime class because she didn’t like the teacher who had replaced Nguyen, but Nguyen continued to involve her in TCA events.
The complaint alleges that in October 2025, Joshua’s brother Brandon Nguyen had sexual contact with the girl, under the guise of her cleaning his boat in exchange for money.
Brandon Nguyen operates a floating fishing cabin called The Office. Josh and Brennen Nguyen are listed on the cabin’s website as shuttle boat captains.
Around that time, other students reportedly began to confront Josh Nguyen about his favoritism toward the girl due to their illegal sexual relationship.
In December 2025, Josh Nguyen allegedly offered the girl $200 to clean his house while his wife and children were away for Christmas. “In reality, Defendant Joshua Nguyen was continuously sexually assaulting a minor child who was unable to consent to the sexual activities which were being performed,” the complaint states.
Josh Nguyen also allegedly installed personal cameras in his school classroom, a fact the complaint claims was known to Principal Carter but not acted upon, even though the school district did not have direct access to the footage.
In addition, the Nguyen brothers allegedly tried trafficking the girl for sex, offering her to a third party who then reported the incident to law enforcement.
When Rockport police questioned the girl in December 2025, she told them what had happened and said Josh Nguyen had discussed “dating her after her graduation.”
Investigators reportedly recovered 900 pages of relevant data from the girl’s electronic devices.
The lawsuit accuses Rockport-Fulton ISD of gross negligence for failing to fire Josh Nguyen after learning about his illegal relationship with a student and personal hidden cameras in his classroom, and for failing to report Nguyen’s conduct to authorities or his victim’s parents, among other claims.
“Viewed objectively, Defendant Joshua Nguyen’s continued employment around minor children involved an extreme degree of risk; and Defendant RFISD, with actual awareness of that risk, nevertheless acted with conscious indifference to Plaintiffs’ rights and safety,” states the complaint.
“Had Defendant RFISD undertaken any preventative measures—including criminal complaint or termination—Plaintiffs would not have been subject to said conduct.”
The lawsuit also accuses Principal Carter of failing to report Nguyen to law enforcement or child protection agencies as required by law, alleging she knew Nguyen exhibited inappropriate grooming behavior with young girls, had an improper relationship with a student, and was caught putting cameras in his classroom.
All three Nguyen brothers are accused of civil sexual assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The lawsuit also states that Rockport-Fulton ISD and Texas Coastal Academy were responsible for the actions of their employee Joshua Nguyen and failed to properly screen, hire, and train employees including Nguyen.
As a result of her sexual abuse by a teacher—under the noses of his employers—the girl has “lost her sense of safety and trust in adults, particularly those in positions of authority” and “feels violated, ashamed, and betrayed by the adults that she was taught to trust and respect.”
Her innocence has been shattered. Her trust has been destroyed. And it could have been prevented if Defendants had done their jobs and protected children instead of protecting and trusting a predator.
The lawsuit adds that since these events have transpired, supporters of the Nguyens have attempted to intimidate the girl’s family and “specifically the victim of these heinous acts.”
“Plaintiff will not be bullied or silenced,” reads the suit.
The girl’s family seeks damages in excess of $10,000,000 and requests a jury trial.
“Plaintiffs seek damages proportionate to the harm suffered, as well as equitable relief necessary to expose and dismantle the policies, practices, and power structures that allowed misconduct to persist unchecked,” the lawsuit states. “The law does not allow school officials to subordinate student safety to institutional interests or extracurricular success. Through this petition, Plaintiffs ask the Court to affirm that principle in clear and unmistakable terms.”
Joshua Nguyen “separated” from Rockport-Fulton ISD in September 2025, according to the Rockport Police Department.
He took a job as executive director of the Aransas County Navigation District, which manages coastal areas and family recreation facilities in the Rockport area. His father, Long Nguyen, serves as an elected ACND commissioner.
Following Nguyen’s arrest, ACND placed him on leave. In March, commissioners voted to fire Nguyen effective May 1, though he is still shown on the ACND website.
Nguyen was released on $100,000 in bonds following his December arrest. Nguyen’s brothers Brandon and Brennen Nguyen are now being “investigated by law enforcement officials for their illegal sexual actions” involving the girl, according to the complaint.
Joshua Nguyen has held a Texas teaching certificate for trade and industrial education since 2022, with a specialization in marine-related occupations.
His certification, which includes a “Recognized” designation for “highly effective public school teachers,” was placed on indefinite suspension in February 2026.
In just the past few years, hundreds of Texas teachers have been accused of sex crimes involving students and other minors. Thousands have been reported to the TEA for sexual misconduct.
Texas Scorecard maintains a map of known educator sexual misconduct arrests.
More than a dozen federal and state sex abuse lawsuits are pending against Texas schools and their employees.
