IT worker at Bob Graham K-8 school touched students, Miami-Dade schools police says
A 50-year-old IT worker at Bob Graham Education Center in Miami Lakes was arrested Monday after being accused of touching, texting, making lewd comments and giving candy to students at the K-8 school, according to authorities.
Martin Zaretsky was arrested Monday at Miami-Dade Schools Police Department headquarters in Doral, his arrest report shows. The Miami-Dade resident remained behind bars at a county jail Tuesday morning.
Zaretsky is accused of touching students at Bob Graham, 15901 NW 79 Ave., multiple times on their breast and buttocks areas, over their clothes and without their consent, Miami-Dade Schools Police said in the arrest report. They said he also texted students without their parents’ consent “in an attempt to gain favor and trust with the victims.
On several occasions, Zaretsky would walk students to his school office after dismissal to give them candy, police said.
Zaretsky would also take the students out of their classrooms without permission from the school’s administrators “so they could skip class and accompany him walking throughout the school,” police said in his arrest report. In other instances, he helped students get their cellphones back after they were taken away by staff for violating school cellphone policies, police said.
On another occasion, Zaretsky told students, “you look good today” and “you have a curvy body,” police said. He also asked the students’ ages, police said, and told them he was younger than their fathers.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools has started the process to fire Zaretsky, the district said.
“Upon learning about this suspected behavior, Miami-Dade Schools Police immediately began their investigation and subsequently made an arrest,” the district said in a statement Tuesday. “This type of comportment will not be tolerated as it runs contrary to the professional conduct we expect from all employees.”
Zaretsky’s attorney information was not immediately available. He remained jailed at the county’s Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center pending a bond hearing, records show. He is charged with seven counts of child molestation of children older than 12 and seven counts of offenses against students by authority figures.
