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BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) – A former Boston Public Schools (BPS) employee is alleged to have used his position to groom a child for sexual abuse.
40-year-old Michael McDonald, who currently lives in South Carolina, appeared in Suffolk County Superior Court on Monday. McDonald faced multiple counts of aggravated rape of child, posing a child in a state of nudity, possession of child sex abuse materials and dissemination of materials harmful to a minor.
According to District Attorney Rachael Rollins, McDonald has been ordered to stay away from and have no contact with the victim or any witnesses. He must also follow all restraining orders and have no unsupervised contact with any child under the age of 18, including his own children. McDonald must also give up his passport.
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The abuse survivor, who is now an adult, claimed to have met McDonald while he was serving as Dean of Students at the Dearborn Middle School in Newton. After becoming a mentor to the student, McDonald allegedly groomed them for abuse.
The sexual assaults began in 2013 when the victim was only 15 years old. These assaults continued for a number of years, according to Rollins, who testified multiple times in support of the victim.
“The victim’s family thought they were getting a mentor and role model for their loved one,” Rollins said. “Instead, they got Michael McDonald, a grown man now accused of using his position of trust to prey on a child.”
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In addition to working at Dearborn Middle School, McDonald is believed to have worked or volunteered with several other schools and programs for at-risk youth. These include the Lilla G. Frederick Pilot Middle School, James F. Condon K-8 School and programs associated with Morgan Memorial Goodwill Industries, Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Boston, College for Every Student, The Trust Project and Straight Ahead Ministries.
McDonald is also accused of photographing the victim in the nude and keeping those images. He additionally sent the victim a nude photograph of himself.
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