Bus Driver Allegedly Sexually Assaulted 6-Year-Old Mentally And Physically Disabled Boy And Video Taped The Attack

September 21, 2011

KITTERY, Maine — A 6-year-old mentally and physically disabled child who can't talk is the alleged victim of a former bus driver who drove him to school over the summer.

Kittery police detective Steve Hamel said Tuesday that John Allen Wright, 45, of Milton, was charged with two counts of gross sexual misconduct — the charge of rape in Maine — in connection with incidents that occurred July 13 and July 15. According to Hamel, Wright is alleged to have raped the boy and videotaped the act before taking him to a summer school for special needs children in Kittery.

Hamel said the Portsmouth, N.H.-based Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force identified the boy from among the videos stored in Wright's computer. He said the alleged crime is particularly difficult because the victim is nonverbal.

"This little man has to speak through us," Hamel said, "and we are going to make sure his voice is heard loud and clear."

Wright is incarcerated at the Strafford County Jail in Dover, N.H., after being arrested earlier this month on six counts of possession of child pornography, stemming from an investigation by ICAC.

The ICAC investigators sent the video to Hamel, who along with school officials was able to identify the child. Wright drove a bus for Provider Enterprises Inc., which provides service to handicapped children in Seacoast New Hampshire and Maine.

He said there is possibly a second victim from Kittery. The videotape that depicts the second assault shows mostly Wright, and investigators are digitally enhancing the video to see if they can positively identify the child.

Kittery School Superintendent Allyn Hutton said Tuesday the school department has added a bus monitor to the Provider bus used to transport Kittery students. She said she is in regular contact with the parents of the 12 children who rode on the bus this summer with Wright as the driver.

"Our primary aim is to maintain their confidentiality," she said. "Because it's a small population, we're being careful to make sure we're not making a difficult situation more difficult."

The school psychologist is available to talk with families, as well.

"This is horrific," Hutton said. "All we can say to these parents is that we will do everything we can to support you."

Hamel said the arrest warrants from Maine were issued against Wright late last week. A fugitive from justice charge was filed against Wright, but Hamel does not know if Wright will waive extradition from New Hampshire. He said bail is expected to be set at $50,000 in York County Superior Court once Wright is arraigned.

Hamel said this is one of the most difficult cases he has seen in his years as a police officer.

"There's nothing anyone can say or do that can even remotely justify a human being doing something like this to a child," he said.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

DOVER — John Allen Wright of Milton, who is accused of child rape, was indicted on 15 additional charges this month related to the alleged sexual assault of a minor from Strafford County.

Wright, 45, was previously facing allegations of gross sexual assault in Kittery, Maine, and federal charges of sexual exploitation of children. Authorities said he abused children while working as a bus driver for Provider Enterprises. He was working as a driver of special needs children at the time of his initial arrest in September.

According to Strafford County Attorney Thomas Velardi, a grand jury indicted Wright on Dec. 15 on two counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault, five counts of felonious sexual assault, four counts of lewdness and indecent exposure and four counts of simple assault. The indictments were made public Tuesday.

An indictment is not an indication of guilt; rather, it means a grand jury has found sufficient evidence to warrant a trial. The charges allege Wright had sexual contact with a male child under the age of 13 between February 2009 and February 2011.

"Time is not really an element of the offense," Velardi said, noting the state would only have to prove the abuse occurred when the child was 13 or younger.

Velardi said prosecutors continue to wade through a significant amount of information and that more charges involving additional victims are possible.

He said his office is working closely with federal prosecutors, who agreed the best way to proceed is to file state charges for alleged sex assaults and federal charges only on the child pornography allegations.

The federal charges claim Wright coerced three minors into engaging in sexually explicit acts with him and videotaped the acts using equipment he bought and transported across state lines.

Wright remains in federal custody. According to a filing in U.S. District Court in Concord, he is held at the Federal Medical Center at the decommissioned military base of Fort Devens, Mass., which houses male offenders requiring specialized or long-term medical or mental health care.

The court filing by warden J. Grondolsky states Wright's mental competency evaluation was delayed due to a heavy forensic case load. Grondolsky wrote that the court should expect a final copy of the evaluation within three weeks of Dec. 12.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

September 03, 2011

PORTSMOUTH — A multi-jurisdictional police investigation, led by the Portsmouth-based Internet Crimes Against Children task force, concluded Thursday with the arrest of a Milton man on charges alleging he was in possession of child pornography.

Portsmouth police Sgt. Tom Grella said the task force and detectives with the New London, Rochester, Portsmouth, Pembroke and Salem police departments were assisted by the N.H. attorney general's office and the Milton Police Department in a search of an apartment at 52A Charles St., Milton. As a result of that search, police arrested John Allen Wright, 45, of the same address.

Wright is charged with five felony counts of possession of child sexual abuse images, each charge punishable by up to 15 years in prison, according to police. Grella said the investigation remains active and could result in additional charges. Wright remains incarcerated at the Strafford County House of Corrections.

"This search was made in conjunction with an ongoing operation by undercover police officers serving in an online capacity who were investigating the illegal use of computers and alleged possession and distribution of sexual abuse images of prepubescent children from within (Wright's) apartment unit," Grella said.

Anyone with information pertaining to the case is urged to call Rochester police Detective Kenneth Tapscott at 330-7167.

Anonymous tips can be left with the Rochester Crimeline Inc. at 335-6500.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Wonder if this sex addict/child abuser has a criminal record and was a pre-employment background check run???? Holy shit!