Substitute teacher arrested after being caught masturbating in classroom in presence of students

A substitute teacher in Cincinnati was arrested after he was caught masturbating in a classroom in the presence of students. Fairfield Police said 41-year-old Tracey Abraham was teaching at Creekside Middle School on January 8, when around 10.30 am the school resource officer started receiving multiple complaints about suspicious behavior behind the teacher's desk.

The SRO was told that Abraham was spotted masturbating while he was in the classroom with all the students. According to WLWT, officials from the Fairfield School District said they do not believe that Abraham had any physical contact with the children and are not aware if any of the students were exposed to nudity during this time.

The school resource officer immediately removed the substitute teacher from the classroom and building. Later Abraham was charged by the Fairfield Police Department with public indecency.

Kristina Fishwick, a mother of a student at the school, told the channel that her daughter had Abraham as a substitute teacher during the first period that day, which was before the incident took place.

She said: "Pure disgust. Knowing that my daughter had been in class with him prior to when this happened and thinking about, 'What if it would have happened while she was in his classroom?' It made me sick to my stomach."

The furious mother got a call from the principal of the school personally because her daughter was in the classroom before the alleged incident.

The district officials also said that the administrative team in the school made attempts to personally reach out to all the parents and guardians of the students who were in Abraham's class on January 8. 

Fishwick said: "It was kind of a relief that he did call, just so I could hear exactly what happened and I was able to ask questions, so it was a relief to be able to talk to somebody." The authorities said that Abraham was removed from the premises immediately and was charged with one count of public indecency later that same day. 

According to court records, Abraham was already released from jail on his own recognizance and a judge has ordered him to stay away from any and all locations that have children younger than 18 years of age.

Fairfield City School has said that the substitute teacher will not be returning to the district and they will also be reporting the incident to the Ohio Department of Education.

The school released the following statements on January 8 afternoon: "In an attempt to keep our school community informed, we want to share some information with you about an incident that occurred on January 8, 2019 with a substitute teacher at Creekside Middle School. Students reported suspicious behavior by the substitute that was taking place behind that teacher’s desk. Once the administration at Creekside Middle School was made aware of this behavior, the school resource officer immediately removed the substitute teacher from the classroom and building."

"Later in the day, the substitute teacher was charged by the Fairfield Police Department with public indecency. At this time, the school district is not aware of the substitute teacher having physical contact with any of our students. In addition, we are not aware of any students being exposed to any nudity. The Creekside Middle School administrative team has made attempts to personally contact the parents/guardians of every student who was in this substitute teacher’s classroom today."

"We want to assure you that this individual will not be returning to our schools. The school district will be reporting this incident to the Ohio Department of Education. Providing a safe, secure and positive learning environment for our students and staff has always been and will continue to be our most important priority. Our local Fairfield Police Department has again proven to be an outstanding partner in these types of unfortunate situations, and we greatly appreciate their service."