A DeKalb County School District middle school teacher faces termination after being accused of attempting to molest a 13-year-old boy at Perimeter Mall, officials said.
Police said the teen was washing his hands in a mall bathroom on Aug. 4 when a man standing next to him began asking inappropriate questions. The man then lured the teen into a bathroom stall, locked the door and reached for the boy’s pants.
Channel 2 Action News reported the victim managed to escape and run to his parents, who were waiting outside the restroom. The teen’s father said he began chasing the suspect out of the mall, officials said, but he escaped.
Dunwoody police last week released surveillance footage of a man they were hoping to identify in connection with the incident.
DeKalb County School District officials said the teacher, who works at Tucker Middle School, saw the video of the incident, notified the district and turned himself in to authorities. He was immediately placed on administrative leave.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is withholding the teacher’s name pending official charges.
“Throughout the weekend, (DeKalb County School District) Public Safety worked swiftly with the City of Dunwoody Police Department, and provided information to assist in their investigation of the alleged incident at Perimeter Mall,” district officials said. “The allegations, if verified and true, will lead to immediate termination.”
Police released surveillance footage of the suspect walking in the mall. Sgt. Robert Parsons told Channel 2 the suspect may have been stalking the victim through several stores before following him into the bathroom.
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