Local

Father: 6-year-old daughter assaulted on school bus

KANNAPOLIS — A father is upset after he says he didn't find out about an incident on a school bus until a day later, after his six-year-old daughter had been placed on a bus with the boys he says assaulted her.

"It's like a nightmare that you can't wake up from," the father said. Channel 9 is not using his name to protect the identity of his daughter.

Police did not press any charges. But the father is upset he didn't find out about the incident until a day after even though his daughter reported it to a counselor at the YMCA.

"The girl had gone in and reported it to one of their workers who receives the kids, and then due to whatever circumstances, we were notified the following day after the kids had left the building," Woodrow Wilson Elementary Principal Erik Johnson said.

The young girl was again on the bus with the two boys before her parents were told.

"It's devastating," the father said.

The YMCA says they followed their protocol. In a statement they said:

"Our priority is protecting our children and we go above and beyond when it comes to their safety.  Protocol was followed, but the director who would have been notified immediately was not working at this particular YMCA that day and did not get the report until the following day. Since the alleged incident happened on the school bus, the school, school resource officer and parents were notified within 24 hours and steps were taken to separate those children involved in our closely supervised afterschool program."
-Kannapolis YMCA Branch