BRADENTON, Fla. (WFLA) — A Manatee County Public Schools substitute teacher who was arrested for “lewd conduct” against a 10-year-old student had a prior school-related arrest in Brevard County, according to a criminal affidavit obtained by News Channel 8.
Malik Belvin, 26, was arrested this past June in the City of Cocoa on two misdemeanor charges, including trespassing on school property and resisting arrest.
Manatee County substitute teacher accused of ‘lewd conduct’ toward 10-year-old
“The individual in question has been barred from all district campuses, and we are actively reviewing our processes for background screenings,” said Jamie Carson, a spokesperson for the Manatee County School District.
Belvin was arrested on June 17 for allegedly “jumping the fence” and then “attempting to open the exterior school door” at Cambridge Elementary School in Cocoa before trying to flee, according to the police department. The 26-year-old was shirtless and listed as homeless by law enforcement.
“That (the previous arrest) … you’d need to bring that up. It absolutely needs to be brought to attention,” said Andrew Jeansonne, of Bradenton.
The Manatee County School District told 8 On Your Side that Belvin worked in multiple schools across the district for 10 days, including Abel Elementary and Sudd Middle School, before his termination and arrest.
The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office said its investigation into “lewd conduct” began with multiple reports from students following their regular teacher’s return to class Monday.
“We found one victim who said that this substitute asked her to go into a closet and had some inappropriate request of her,” said Randy Warren, of the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.
Belvin was immediately removed from the middle school classroom following a rapid and joint investigation between the school district and the sheriff’s office. He was arrested on Tuesday evening.
“We’ll do everything we can to make sure this person is never teaching or being in a school and around kids again,” Warren said.
The Manatee County School District said that Belvin was hired as a substitute teacher via a nationwide agency, ESS. The company’s website claims all substitute teachers in Florida have to be background checked and fingerprinted. ESS could not be reached for comment at the time of publication of this story.
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