A physical education teacher and coach at an Alpharetta private school has been arrested and charged with possessing child pornography and inappropriate contact with a child on the internet, police said.
Tarik Uduk, 25, was taken into custody Saturday at Fulton Science Academy and originally charged with 10 counts of possession of child sexually abusive material and one count of obscene internet contact with a child, Sandy Springs police spokesman Sgt. Sal Ortega said Tuesday in a news release.
According to Ortega, the investigation began the Wednesday before Uduk’s arrest when Sandy Springs detectives received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about a person uploading child sexual abuse material to an online server. The GBI helped pinpoint the upload location as a home in Sandy Springs.
Investigators who reviewed the digital content obtained through a search warrant said they found multiple sexually explicit images and videos of children between the ages of 12 and 15. Sandy Springs detectives are continuing to analyze the content and search for evidence to determine if any of the children are students who were in contact with Uduk, Ortega said.
Police did not say if any of the children had been identified.
After Uduk was arrested Saturday, he was booked into the Fulton County Jail. On Monday, he was released on $50,000 bond, online court records show.
Nine of the child porn charges against Uduk were dropped, though he remains charged with one count of possessing child sexual abuse material and one count of obscene internet contact with a child.
Fulton Science Academy’s Head of School, Dr. Kenan Sener, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution the organization would not comment on Uduk’s arrest as the investigation remains open.
But in communications with parents obtained by the AJC, Sener said Uduk has been placed on administrative leave and will not be allowed to return to the school. Sener also addressed parents who expressed concerns that Uduk was not immediately fired.
“Per our legal guidance, you don’t act on a case based on allegations, but you wait for the case to come to completion,” Sener said in an email to parents. He also noted that the school expects the legal case to continue “for a while,” so Fulton Science Academy will hire someone new to cover Uduk’s duties until his case is closed.
A full-time substitute teacher is covering Uduk’s P.E. class, while the school’s athletic director will take over coaching the cross country team, according to Sener.
Sener also said the school’s counseling team would be addressing Uduk’s arrest “in the most appropriate way with our students.”
Anyone with information on this case is asked to contact Sandy Springs Detective H. Reich at HReich@SandySpringsGA.Gov or 770-551-6923. Anyone with information on other cases of child exploitation is asked to contact their local police department or the GBI’s Child Exploitation Unit at 404-270-8870.
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