Jacksonville police arrested 35-year-old Robert Luke for allegedly groping a child younger than 12.
Luke is a math teacher at Lake Shore Middle, and served as a youth soccer and swim coach. Police arrested him on Monday but it wasn't announced until Tuesday afternoon. The investigation started after the victim came forward. The parents were notified and they called JSO.
JSO Assistant Police Chief Annie Smith says it's not clear whether this was an isolated incident or if other children were targeted. "You have an individual who has access to children on a daily basis . . . that person has interaction with young children all the time," says Smith.
This isn't the first time allegations have been made against the teacher. In 2007 a student accused Luke of similar actions while serving as a substitute teacher at Southside Middle School.
Police charged Luke with two counts of sexual battery and lewd and lascivious molestation on a child younger than 12.