Former ‘Teacher of the Year’ facing life in prison for soliciting minor online
A former teacher from Westminster West Middle School in Carroll County, Maryland, has been in custody since his September 13 arrest and being charged with four counts of solicitation of a minor and “using a facility of interstate commerce to attempt to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity,” according to WTOP in Maryland. Kenneth Brian Fischer, 39, who had also worked for multiple other schools in Carroll County dating back to at least 2000, was indicted in federal court on February 22. The single count indictment filed against Fischer alleges that he “used electronic mail and text messaging to attempt to coerce a minor to meet for sex between August 31 and September 5.
Fox News in Washington reports that Fischer was a former Carroll County “Teacher of the Year.” Fischer was busted by authorities as part of an undercover sting operation this summer when he solicited online who he believed was a 14-year-old boy, but who was in fact a Fairfax County Police undercover detective. Following his arrest, Fischer was fired from Carroll County Public Schools on September 25, according to The Carroll County Times. Fischer was a resident of Westminster.
Carroll County Times also said that the investigation led detectives to other possible victims in Northern Virginia and Maryland, according to Fairfax County police.
Fischer also reportedly sent explicit sexual images of himself to the online undercover detective he believed to be a young boy. Once the undercover detective in Virginia learned Fischer hailed from Maryland, that detective enlisted the cooperation of the Maryland State Police, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and Westminster County Police in making Fischer’s arrest, according to NBC News in Washington.
In addition to Westminster West Middle School, Fischer has also worked at North Carroll High School, Winters Mill High School, Francis Scott Key High School, Manchester Valley High School, Sykesville Middle School and Mt. Airy Middle School. NBC reports that authorities believe there still may be other victims in Northern Virginia and Maryland.
A hotline has been established where victims can report information and seek assistance. Call (443) 373-1684 or email crimeline@ccg.carr.org to contact law enforcement.
The United States Attorney’s Office in Maryland reports that Fischer is looking at a mandatory minimum of ten years in prison and a maximum sentence of life behind bars. Fischer’s case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.
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~ Written by: Richard Webster, Ace News Today / Connect with Richard on Facebook and Twitter
