ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — An employee at the prestigious Admiral Farragut Academy in St. Peterburg is accused of raping a child and there are now concerns that there are more victims are out there.
Marc Spera, 57, was arrested on campus just after midnight on May 23.
“He was a Resident Life Assistant, his role and responsibilities were to do with the kids after school and on the weekends, so he wasn’t in the classroom per-say,” FDLE Special Agent Mark Brutnell said.
He went on to say most of Spera’s job was spent working with students after school hours and on the weekends in the dormitories. There are about 500 students enrolled at the school.
Spera is facing 50 charges that date back to 2008 when he worked at an all-boys private boarding school in Pennsylvania. He’s accused of sexually assaulting a student at least 10 times. According to the charges, the student was younger than 16.
“Spera worked and lived on campus (in Pennsylvania) from 1995 to 2010,” a news release from the FDLE said. “He is accused of victimizing a student at the school from 2008 to 2010.”
Spera worked at Admiral Farragut Academy for the past four years. He lived on campus and supervised students after school hours in their dorms.
Police are asking any potential victims to speak up.
“Clearly the kids do not need to be ashamed, embarrassed or scared by any means. We’re here to help them and assist them with any type of counseling they may need or for the family dynamic that may exist,” Special Agent Brutnell said. “First and foremost, please come forward. We’ll be helpful and concerned obviously. That’s why we’re here. We don’t know what we don’t know.”
Anyone with information is asked to call the Florida Department of Law Enforcement at 1-800-226-1140.
8 On Your Side’s Christine McLarty called Admiral Farragut with questions, she was sent this response:
The Boy Scouts of America also sent 8 On Your Side a statement saying they’re deeply troubled to learn of the allegations. Spera was supposed to be the Assistant Director of a boys camp in Maryland this summer.
We were deeply troubled to learn about the allegations against this individual. While this matter is unrelated to Scouting, upon learning of these reports we took immediate action to remove this individual and preclude him from any future participation in our programs.
Nothing is more important than the safety and protection of children in our Scouting programs – it is our top priority. The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) has a multi-layered process of safeguards informed by experts, including the following, all of which act as barriers to abuse: a leadership policy that requires at least two youth-protection trained adults be present with youth at all times and bans one-on-one situations where adults would have any interaction alone with children – either in person, online, or via text; a thorough screening process for adult leaders and staff including criminal background checks, and the prompt mandatory reporting of any allegation or suspicion of abuse to law enforcement. The BSA also offers a 24/7 Scouts First Helpline (1-844-SCOUTS1) and email contact address (scouts1st@scouting.org) for help reporting suspected abuse or inappropriate behavior and for victims or members of their family to request funding for in-person counseling.
For more information about the BSA’s youth protection policies, our commitment to supporting victims, and our efforts to be part of the broader solution to child abuse, please visit: www.scouting.org/youth-safety.
Boy Scouts of America (BSA), Scout Executive Robert Nakagawa, Del-Mar-Va Council
