BANNING (CNS) - A Banning middle school administrator suspected of trying to arrange a sexual tryst with a boy -- who turned out to be an undercover law enforcement officer -- was being held today in lieu of $1 million bail.
Charles Patrick Mayer, 55, of Menifee was arrested and booked into the West Valley Detention Center in San Bernardino Friday on suspicion of arranging to meet a minor for sex. Mayer is the dean of students at Nicolet Middle School.``It is not believed that Mr. Mayer's actions involved the district or any students from the district,'' according to a statement released by the Banning Unified School District.
``The safety and security of students and staff is a top priority of the district, and the district takes all allegations of this nature extremely seriously. The district is fully cooperating with law enforcement in its investigation.''According to district officials, Mayer has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of his case in San Bernardino County.
Sheriff's Detective Donald Patton said deputies allegedly encountered the educator on a social media page while conducting an unrelated investigation. Mayer allegedly began chatting with whom he believed to be a 14-year-old boy, and the decoy responding to the suspect carried on virtual conversations with him over a five-day span, Patton said.
The teacher ``sent nude pictures of himself to the decoy and wanted the decoy to come back to his residence ... for the weekend, where they could engage in sexual acts,'' Patton said. When Mayer allegedly went to Rancho Cucamonga to retrieve the individual he believed was a teenage boy, deputies confronted and arrested him without incident, Patton said.
Anyone with information that might be helpful to the investigation was asked to contact the sheriff's department at (909) 477-2800.