Former Union County middle school teacher accused of sex crimes with student
A former Union County middle school social studies teacher is charged with sex crimes against a student, deputies said Wednesday.
The Union County Sheriff’s Office started their investigation into 26-year-old Max Martin, a former Piedmont Middle School teacher, last month. They said the investigation started after Piedmont Middle students reported getting “inappropriate communications/requests” from Martin through his social media accounts.
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Detectives interviewed the victims and witnesses and collected evidence.
Martin was arrested Wednesday morning and taken to the Union County jail, the sheriff’s office said. He’s been charged with one count of indecent liberties with a child and one count of indecent liberties with a student. His bond conditions haven’t been set yet.
“I commend the victims who came forward during this investigation for their bravery and resilience,” Sheriff Eddie Cathey said in a statement. “The deputies, detectives, and Crime Lab personnel who are actively investigating this case have done excellent work. My office remains committed to ensuring the safety of our local students and staff members and I encourage anyone with additional information about this case to contact our detectives.”
A spokesperson for Union County Public Schools said Martin was hired recently -- in November 2023 -- and resigned on Wednesday.
A mom told Channel 9′s Evan Donovan her daughter is in Martin’s class. She said her daughter didn’t get any messages from him, but after she heard the news, she thinks he was grooming his students.
“‘He almost seemed to favor all of the girls a lot, letting them listen to their music, letting them do what they wanted, basically, I just felt like he was grooming them,’” she said. “This is like three weeks ago that she was telling me this.”
That mom said her daughter told her that her teacher hasn’t been there for three weeks.
Anyone with information about the investigation is asked to call 911, the UCSO at 704-283-3789, or Union County Crime Stoppers at 704-283-5600.
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