A Georgia preschool worker is behind bars after authorities said he molested two children at an after-school program.
Alexander Tredway, 18, faces five felony charges, including two counts of child molestation, two counts of child cruelty and one count of sodomy, Jefferson police said.
Tredway, who worked at the Bright Beginnings day care in Jefferson, was arrested last week after an investigation by police and the Jackson County Division of Family & Children Services, police Chief Joseph Wirthman said in a statement.
That investigation is ongoing, but authorities said there are “two known victims at this time.”
In a statement posted to Facebook, the day care apologized to parents, who learned about the allegations on the police department’s social media page.
“It is with a devastated heart that we confirm this horrible news is true,” the day care wrote. “It was never Bright Beginning’s intention for any parent to be notified about this situation on Facebook.”
The day care said administrators met last Thursday with the parents whose children were in Tredway’s class and planned to notify all parents the next morning.
“Our top priority is the two precious children involved. We are doing everything in our power to help ensure that this individual is brought to justice."
“The individual charged with this heinous crime was an afterschool teacher,” the school said, noting Tredway passed a background check before being hired and previously worked at another day care. “Because of all of our restrictions for COVID-19, we can say with certainty that none of our other classrooms were involved.”
According to the school, the investigation began earlier this month when a parent contacted the day care about “something concerning” their child said about the teacher. School officials said they reviewed surveillance footage from the classroom but didn’t see anything inappropriate. The police department was contacted Jan. 10, and two students were interviewed the following day.
“The police uncovered in their investigation that the situation was a lot more horrific than what was stated in the original allegation,” the school’s statement read.
Tredway was arrested Jan. 12 after being interviewed by detectives. He remains held at the Jackson County Jail without bond, online records show.
“Our top priority is the two precious children involved,” the school wrote. “We are doing everything in our power to help ensure that this individual is brought to justice.”
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