A custodian working at a faculty district in California was arrested this week after allegedly circling an elementary faculty whereas a knife, duct tape, gloves and zip ties sat contained in the automobile he was discovered driving.
The person, recognized by Berkeley police as a 61-year-old Richmond resident and by the Berkeley Unified College District (BUSD) as certainly one of its staff, was arrested February 16 on costs of lewd conduct and annoying or molesting a minor. The district referred members of the varsity neighborhood to a number of security sources in response to the arrest and recognized pupil security as a "prime precedence" as authorities' investigation into the incident strikes ahead.
In response to Berkeley police, officers with the division's bike unit have been notified by an official at Sylvia Mendez Elementary College that a automobile was circling the campus on Wednesday afternoon. The identical automobile was believed to have circled the campus 10 or extra occasions beforehand, police mentioned.
The campus' faculty useful resource officer instructed police the automobile was believed to be the identical one by which a person was beforehand noticed "presumably masturbating outdoors of Sylvia Mendez Elementary faculty in January," based on a Thursday information launch from the Berkeley Police Division.
Police mentioned they situated the automobile parked close to the varsity and arrested the motive force.
Officers "discovered a number of gadgets of concern—together with a hunting-style knife, gloves, duct tape, and a bundle of zip ties" contained in the automobile, Berkeley police mentioned.
In a Thursday letter addressed to members of the varsity district neighborhood, BUSD Superintendent Brent Stephens mentioned faculty officers had reported the person to police earlier this 12 months. It was after the person's arrest this week that BUSD officers found he was employed by the district, the letter mentioned.
Stephens didn't title the worker in his letter however wrote the person was employed as "a custodian at Rosa Parks Elementary College and has been substituting at different BUSD campuses throughout this faculty 12 months."
The worker had additionally beforehand labored as a custodian on the elementary faculty the place he was arrested, Stephens added.
A BUSD spokesperson instructed Newsweek the person had been working on the district as a custodian since October 2018.
"Like all staff, his fingerprint background verify was cleared by means of the Division of Justice previous to his starting his employment," the spokesperson mentioned.
"District employees referred to as the police in January 2021, as a consequence of a suspicious particular person who had been seen on multiple event in a automobile outdoors of Sylvia Mendez Elementary College," the spokesperson added. "The police requested the employees to name instantly in the event that they noticed the automobile once more, which is what occurred yesterday."
The person was positioned on depart and won't work at any district services till police are completed investigating the incident, the superintendent's letter mentioned. Police instructed district officers that the person was not in custody as of Thursday, Stephens wrote, and officers inspired district employees members to report suspected sightings of the person or his automobile to high school principals and police if he's believed to be noticed close to any of the district's faculties.
Police and BUSD additionally inspired anybody with data relating to the worker's alleged actions to contact the Berkeley Police Division's Youth Providers Unit.
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