FOLLOWING the events of Friday, June 19 when a teacher at Lumen Christi Catholic College was charged with child procurement offences, the school conducted assemblies with students and school counsellors were on site.
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School principal Steve Centra said the school was fully co-operating with police and that it was holding several assemblies with the students to ease their concerns.
“We have told the parents as much as we know, as it is a police investigation the college has no further information,” Mr Centra said.
“At this stage we are just meeting with the students to let them know that their safety is our number one priority.”
In a piece of correspondence issued to parents and carers on Monday, June 22 Mr Centra said he understood the recent news was disturbing for members of the community and that it was important to keep the students informed.
“We will be conducting various year level assemblies at the start of the day to reiterate the following to the students: police have provided explicit assurances that the charges do not relate to students of Lumen and alternative arrangements have been made to replace the teacher concerned,” he said.
The head of directorate services at the Canberra Catholic Education Office (CEO), Frances Neuss, said school counsellors have been provided to staff, students and parents as a support, if needed.
“The Catholic Education Office is working closely with the school to ensure the wellbeing of students and staff,” Ms Neuss said.
“[We are] fully cooperating with the NSW police in its investigation.
“For legal reasons, we are not permitted to name the staff member concerned.
“The Catholic Education Office and Lumen Christi College takes the opportunity of reminding all children and parents of the importance of internet safety and of encouraging children to be open about their internet usage and to take responsibility about this issue.”
Ms Neuss said the CEO and Lumen Christi would continue to work with the local community and NSW Police.
At around 8.30am on Friday June 19, Sex Crimes Squad detectives arrested a 36-year-old teacher from the school for alleged child procurement offences.
Over the course of the last few weeks, detectives from the Sex Crimes Squad’s Child Exploitation Internet Unit were conducting online operations while assuming the online identity of a 13-year-old girl.
During these operations, they spoke to a man on a number of occasions via an online chat room.
Police will allege the man made a number of sexually explicit comments and encouraged the 13-year-old girl to meet him.
After making a number of inquiries into the matter, detectives executed a search warrant at a home in Bega on Friday, June 19 and seized a number of electronic devices which will be forensically examined.
