Education

Elementary School Custodian Arrested For Allegedly Touching 8-Year-Old Girl Inappropriately

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Marlo Safi Culture Reporter
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A custodian at a South Carolina elementary school was arrested after complaints that he allegedly touched an 8-year-old girl inappropriately, numerous sources reported.

William Lee Miller, 57, was charged with second-degree assault and battery, according to WYFF4

After an 8-year-old girl at the school reported to school officials about the inappropriate touching. Administrators at Sue Cleveland Elementary School reported the complaint to local authorities on Wednesday, according to WYFF4. A day earlier,

“During the course of the investigation, it was discovered that Miller inappropriately touched the student on her buttocks and made inappropriate comments to her after she entered a school stairwell,” Greenville County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Ryan Flood said, according to WYFF4. 

Deputies arrested Miller at his home without incident, Flood said. He also commended the young girl for telling adults about the incident. 

“We are extremely proud of the courage displayed by this young child and very grateful for her parents and the school administrators for their timely response in communicating this matter,” Flood said, according to WYFF4.

The district’s spokesperson, Tim Waller, told WYFF4 that Miller was an employee from February 2019 to May 5, and that he had passed a background check when he was hired.

Numerous other school teachers and staff across the country have been arrested on sex-offense related charges.

In late March, police arrested a custodian at a Maine high school after he allegedly hid in a ceiling to secretly film girls changing their clothes in the bathroom. (RELATED: Police Charge School Custodian After He Allegedly Hid In Ceiling To Film Girls Changing In Bathroom)

In May, the Justice Department announced that a substitute teacher in Minnesota was arrested for allegedly “sextorting” children by pretending to be a girl on the internet and then threatening to expose sexually explicit photos. 

Several teachers have been arrested for having sexual relationships with students or other children while they were minors