BROOKLINE, MASS. (WHDH) - A man is facing rape charges after allegedly sexually assaulting a middle school student while he was a teacher in Brookline, officials said Tuesday.
In March, Brookline police began investigating allegations of sexual assault after a report from a Brookline resident, officials said.
In an interview on Monday, the victim told the Norfolk County District Attorney’s office that her social studies teacher assaulted her in sixth and seventh grade, starting in 2016 when she was 12 and he was 31. She said the assaults continued through the end of the 2018 school year, with the majority of them allegedly happening in a classroom at the Heath School in Brookline.
After the interview, officials confirmed Larry Chen, 36, of Newton, had been employed as a Brookline Public School teacher during that time and issued a warrant for his arrest on charges of aggravated statutory rape, rape of a child under 16 and indecent assault and battery of a child under 14.
Chen was arrested Monday and was arraigned on 18 counts of each charge. He was held on $10,000 cash bail.
Chen resigned from the district in 2018 and has been working as a tutor since, officials said. Brookline school superintendent Linus Guillory said Chen also worked as a seasonal employee with the town’s recreation department last summer and that school officials learned of the allegations Tuesday.
“While the judicial process plays out, we are nonetheless deeply concerned by these allegations and are committed to providing our full cooperation with the investigation into these charges. Our paramount concern is always the safety and well-being of our students, and school counselors are available to students as needed to provide support,” Guillory said.
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