A Florida man has been arrested after police say he tried to solicit sex with a 2-year-old child.
Xavier Donte Alexander, 28, was arrested by Palm Beach Authorities on April 1 and charged two counts of obscene communication, one for using a computer to seduce, solicit or lure a child; and a second for travelling to meet after use of a computer to lure a child, CBS reports.
Alexander, a former fourth-grade teacher at Grove Park Elementary School in Palm Beach Gardens, also advertised as a babysitter on various websites, including Care.com, where it is believed he was searching for victims.
His profile has since been removed from the website but authorities think he may have targeted more children on other sites.
The court ordered that the defendant be held on a $1 million bond at a hearing held on April 2.
Palm Beach County School District issued a statement claiming to be “shocked and appalled” by the accusations and confirmed they are cooperating with law enforcement.
The statement reads: “The District is shocked and appalled by the nature of the crimes for which Alexander was arrested.
“While the crimes that Alexander is accused of committing did not occur on school property, and did not involve District students, Grove Park administrators reached out to parents of students in Alexander’s class immediately after learning of his arrest.
“The District is also offering families support services.”
A spokesperson for Care.com told CBS12 News: “This report is frightening and truly disturbing. The safety and well-being of the Care.com community are deeply important to us.
“Every caregiver who uses our platform has completed a background check—CareCheck— and we imagine a background check was also conducted as part of this individual’s primary employment as a schoolteacher. We use a variety of safety protocols to detect bad actors and we continually monitor on-platform activity.
“Upon learning of this arrest, we promptly removed this person’s profile and notified families with whom he had been in contact with that he is no longer on our platform. We have proactively reached out to local law enforcement and stand ready to assist in their investigation.”
If convicted of both charges, Alexander could face up to 20 years in prison.