TULSA, Okla. — An officer with the Mannford Police Department who also worked as a school resource officer at Mannford Public School was arrested after being accused of sexual abuse.
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation said James Matthew Waltman provided alcohol to a student and engaged inappropriately with them while working at the school.
MPS released a statement Tuesday after being notified of the allegations. They said they are cooperating with authorities. In part, their statement reads, "The safety and security of our students remains the highest responsibility and ultimate priority of the District."
James Salsman has a young daughter enrolled at MPS. He said he was shocked to hear about something like this happening in his district.
"When I first heard the news, I was blown away because I’ve talked to the guy, and I just can’t believe it," said Salsman. "He didn’t act like that kind of person that would do something like that. I’ve got a daughter myself, so it brings up some concerns, which it would any parent."
Salsman said he wonders what safeguards are in place to prevent things like this from happening in schools.
"Definitely I guess from the law enforcement side, a thorough background check of your officers and make sure there's no prior issues with your officers before putting them as a detail for a school," said Salsman. "That's one measure they could probably take, I guess but even then, people could be hiding that and sneak through the cracks."
On March 5, OSBI arrested Waltman, and he was booked into the Creek County Jail. He is being held under a complaint of first-degree rape and providing alcohol to a person under 21.
2 News reached out to the Mannford Police Department for additional information on the case, but they were not available to speak with us.
No charges are filed at this time.
The school released the following statement on the allegations:
This is a developing story.
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