According to a letter to parents sent by a Las Vegas school on Thursday, an employee was detained for “electronic surveillance at school without knowledge.”
In an afternoon media statement, the CCSDPD identified the suspect as Haroon Zakai, 44. According to CCSD, he will be placed on unpaid leave upon release in accordance with the agreed agreement with the employee’s bargaining unit and will be prohibited from entering campus.
The letter was sent by Principal Anna Cool-MacRae from Gwendolyn Woolley Elementary School.
“The safety of our students is the number one priority at Woolley Elementary School,” according to the letter. “As always, we want to keep you informed of important matters happening within our school community.”
According to the letter, an employee was detained on allegations of unknowingly conducting electronic surveillance at school, attempting to delete or conceal evidence, and monitoring private conversations.
“CCSD Police arrested the individual in connection with an investigation initiated on Wednesday,” according to the letter. “The initial investigation indicates the matter only involved adults.”
FOX5 received a snapshot of the purported recording device, as shown above, and spoke with the individual who discovered it.
“I looked at the device and thought, ‘Oh my goodness, this looks like a recording device. “What is this doing in here?” she asked FOX 5. The teacher placed the device on her desk and reexamined it after the kids left.
She claims she subsequently had a visit from the suspect, who wanted the gadget and wrestled with her to obtain it, creating scrapes on her arms. She questioned the suspect about what he intended to do with the recording equipment.
“He got on his knees and said, ‘Please don’t tell anyone.'” Do not call the cops. “This will ruin me,” she declared. “He just wanted to record the kids to try to find words or phrases or certain sounds that can be picked up by AI that would indicate bullying so he can open his own business to create an anti-bullying device that he can sell so that parents are aware of what’s happening to their kids,” she said.
Teacher Mark Wilson snapped a snapshot of the supposed recording device. He said the suspect also came into his classroom to clarify things. Wilson questions the school principal’s claim that the incident “only involved adults” when the recording device was in a classroom with young special needs children. He said FOX5 that district authorities warned him that if he went to the media about the incident, he would be dismissed for insubordination.
“I don’t care if they fire me,” Wilson stated.
“I think I would put a vote to the community,” he went on to say. “Would you rather have me teach your kids, or all the weirdos who go around lying to you about some creepy tech at their school recording their kids, and then some creepy school district people say, ‘Hey, let’s protect him?'” It is more crucial to the school district’s public image. No. Sorry.”
The employee will be on leave and no longer permitted on campus. Cool-MacRae said they are working with law enforcement on their inquiry.
“Please know that this is a police investigation and that we, as school officials, do not have additional information to share,” the head of the school said.