A 53-year-old band director at a Northern Virginia high school has been arrested for allegedly engaging in an inappropriate conversation with a teen boy.
According to a news release from Fairfax County Police, Laurence Einuis was arrested Thursday at West Springfield High School on charges of use of communications systems to facilitate certain offenses involving children.
Investigators say the incident occurred Monday and the 14-year-old boy involved quickly told police about what had happened. Classmates say the teen is a freshman at West Springfield.
"[Einuis] always seemed like a nice guy," junior Kendra Campbell said. "To hear that about him, it's really surprising. We'd see him at all the football games because our band is really important to our school."
Others say the arrest lit up their social media sites, even creating a divide among students.
"Some people are taking sides because people knew him personally, saying not to jump to conclusions because we don't know the details yet," sophomore Hamza Alumni said.
Fairfax County Schools officials say Einuis has been suspended without pay.
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Einuis has worked at West Springfield High School since 2003. Before that, he was also a band director at Stuart High School for three years.
West Springfield High School Principal Mark Greenfelder released the following statement Thursday evening to parents, pointing out Einuis has been suspended.
Dear West Springfield High School Families,
I wanted to alert you to some unpleasant news involving one of our teachers who was served with an arrest warrant today by Fairfax County Police and charged with use of communications systems to facilitate certain offenses involving children. The arrest of Mr. Einuis was in connection with an alleged incident involving one of our students. The teacher has been removed from the classroom and suspended. Police have indicated that this remains an ongoing investigation.
This is an unfortunate episode and certainly is not indicative of the wonderfully talented and professional staff we have assembled at West Springfield High School. If you have any questions or concerns about this or other school-related matters, please do not hesitate to contact my office. Thank you for your continued support of our school.
Sincerely,
Mark Greenfelder
Principal
