A school resource officer in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, has been arrested for alleged sexual misconduct involving two young girls..
During a press conference on Wednesday, police said the Bethlehem Area School District informed them of 43-year-old Costas Nick Alestas’s alleged actions. Police accuse Alestas, a school resource officer and co-ed soccer coach at East Hills Middle School, of having a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl and taking at least one upskirt video of an 11-year-old girl.
He was placed on immediate administrative leave, CBS News reports.
Police believe Alestas’ relationship with the 14-year-old girl began in January, but the Bethlehem Area School District did not learn of it until late April, the district said in a statement obtained by the outlet.
‼️COP R*PED 14yo STUDENT 👀
THE SILENT EPIDEMIC 🤐🤫
Costas Nick Alestas a Pennsylvania school resource OFFICER was arrested for pressuring a 14yo student into a S*XUAL relationship and MOLESTING her during a school dance he was chaperoning 👀
Costas Nick Alestas is ALSO… pic.twitter.com/1KDGFiEFDB
— i Expose Racist & Pedos (@iSeeRacist) May 16, 2024
“On Wednesday, May 15, 2024, the District informed the Bethlehem Police Department of the reported allegations and the Children and Youth referral. The District and the Bethlehem Police Department worked in tandem to place Officer Alestas on administrative leave from both organizations. The District deactivated the Officer’s access to all District resources. The District immediately shared all reported information with the Bethlehem Police Department’s investigating officers,” the statement read.
“The victim disclosed she had been involved in ongoing communication with Alestas while at school, including him providing her with his personal cellular telephone number,” City of Bethlehem Police Department Capt. Nicholas Lechman said during Wednesday’s press conference. “At one point, the victim’s mother discovered text messages on her phone and when Alestas became aware of this, he began using a second phone number to communicate with the victim. The communication with Alestas included conversations about engaging in sexual acts. As the communication between Alestas and the victim continued, the interactions progressed into several encounters involving sexual contact between the two.”
Lechman said one of the sexual encounters occurred on school property during a school dance. He also said Alestas took an upskirt video of an 11-year-old girl “without the victim’s knowledge while she was walking in a hallway.”
Alestas was arrested and bail set at $500,000. Court records show that Alestas could not post bail and that he will appear in court later this month, reports CBS News.
