ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — In Northwest St. Johns County, Chappell Schools has a private preschool campus.
The school's location is caught in a firestorm. It’s the subject of two lawsuits by parents alleging their children were molested there.
The first case dealt with former Chappell Schools assistant teacher Anthony Guadalupe. He is currently in jail charged with 14 counts of child sexual abuse, according to St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office.
The other case has not been reported on, until now.
First Coast News obtained the sheriff’s office report about a second teacher.
The report says a police review of live-streamed classroom surveillance video showed persistent physical contact and sexually inappropriate activity between that male teacher and a 4-year-old girl student.
It says the school’s director self reported the questionable conduct to law enforcement and provided more than a month’s worth of videos to review from November through December 2021.
First Coast News counted more than 70 incidents in which the teacher is described as holding, touching, and kissing the child, and having the girl sit on his lap.
At one point, the reports says it appeared he was “rubbing her chest and his hands traveled down her leg”. On several occasions it said he put his hand insider her shirt and touched her groin area.
The video and a witness also reported the teacher was seen accompanying children into the restroom, which the school’s director said was not standard.
The teacher has not been arrested, so First Coast News is not naming him at this point. According to the report, he moved to teach in Germany in February 2022.
In a Zoom interview with law enforcement, the report says the teacher denied touching any children sexually.
The case was referred to the State Attorney's Office for prosecution, but he has not been formally charged. First Coast News has reached out to prosecutors to find out why.
The school sent us a statement last week that read, "...we have fully cooperated with the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office and all other authorities in this matter and will continue to do so."