A Worcester man charged with kidnapping, strangling and throwing a young girl off a bridge into a lake in Worcester has been suspended indefinitely from his job a systems support analyst at a school in Southborough, according to a letter.
Authorities say 35-year-old Joshua Hubert kidnapped a 7-year-old girl early Sunday from a family cookout, choked her and then tossed her 50 feet off the I-290 bridge into Lake Quinsigamond.
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The girl survived the drop and then swam to shore in the town of Shrewsbury and ran to a woman’s house for help. She was soaked and in her pajamas.
“She had to walk up a hill and up some stairs. I think it’s pretty miraculous that she is alive,” said Marsey Pendexter, who lives on the lake.
Prosecutors said the girl was in her pajamas and soaking wet when she knocked on the woman’s front door at around 4 a.m. Police say she suffered “visible injuries” that were not life-threatening.
Officials at the Fay School sent a letter to parents Tuesday explaining that Hubert was still in his probationary period of employment and that he did not have any unsupervised interactions with students. Hubert has been banned from the school pending a police investigation.
Officials say Hubert went through the same vetting process that the school follows for all prospective employees.
Hubert also briefly worked at the Sterling Police Department as a dispatcher.
Hubert is charged with kidnapping. A not-guilty plea was entered at his arraignment on Monday. He was ordered held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing on Thursday. More charges could be filed.
To read the letter in full, click here.
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