A maths professor has been charged with secret peeping after allegedly taking photos up a student’s skirt using a camera pen.
And when police arrested 43-year-old Jonathan Hatch, they claim they also found a stash of child pornography on his computer.
Hatch has now resigned from Guilford College, North Carolina, after one of his students allegedly caught him taking a photo of her under his desk during a class.
She told investigators she was sitting in her chair when she noticed Hatch’s left hand ‘moving toward her in an unnatural way’.
The woman immediately alerted police and college authorities after the incident on May 25.
Police say the camera pen had a USB attachment which allowed him to burn the photographs on to a CD.
When officers searched Hatch’s computer, they also allegedly found a stash of child pornography, with numerous images of children in ‘sexually suggestive and exposed positions’.
He was held overnight in Guilford County Jail after being charged with one count of secret peeping and five counts of sexual exploitation of a minor for allegedly possessing child pornography.
Hatch, who had worked at the college since 2003, posted his $25,000 bond and was released the next day. He resigned on June 3.
Tammy Alt, an associate dean, praised the student for alerting police. She told Fox 8: ‘She did show incredible bravery. I am very proud of her for speaking up.’
In a statement, Dean Adrienne Israel, vice president of academic affairs, said: ‘Mr Hatch, who has had a successful history with the college, resigned his position on June 3 before the college had completed its investigation.
‘The College community is saddened by these events and is cooperating fully with the Greensboro Police Department in its investigation.
‘Guilford College does not condone, and will not tolerate, behaviour of the type alleged.’
