(KCEN) -- A fourth grade teacher at Hewitt Elementary School has been arrested for indecency with a child.
On December 6, 60-year-old John Gates was arrested on two counts of indecency with a child and booked into the McLennan County Jail.
The incidents happened between June 2003 and June 2009 on Denton Drive in Hewitt. The claims happened outside of Gates' employment at the school and did not involve any students in his classes.
Midway Independent School District has been fully cooperating with the investigation, even though the incidents were not related to his job as a teacher.
In a letter released to parents, the school district said, "The safety of our children is of the utmost priority, and the district will do everything we can to protect the well-being of Midway students."
Gates has not been in the classroom since October 9.
According to an arrest affidavit, the female victim said that Gates touched her inappropriately in the past.
The victim said he began touching her under her clothing when she was 5 or 6-years-old. She said these incidents happened several times until she was 10 or 11-years-old, when Gates stopped.
The investigation is ongoing.
