Educator Charged with Sex Offenses

(02/16/07 -- LILLINGTON) (WTVD) -- A former assistant principal at a Raleigh High School faced a judge Friday morning, charged with almost 50 counts of sexual offenses.

Larry Jewell, 57, was one of four assistant principals at Southeast Raleigh Magnet High School who was hired in Wake County in 1999.

Dunn Police arrested Jewell Thursday afternoon at the high school. Now the former educator faces almost 50 counts including statutory rape, sexual offense while in a parental role and taking indecent liberties with a child.

He had been at Southeast Raleigh since January 2005 and resigned Thursday. Officials say none of the alleged crimes took place on campus and don't appear to involve any students in the Wake County schools.

"When I found out what his job title was or his position then I didn't waste any time on it," investigator David Wittenton said.

Wittenton has been an investigator with Dunn Police for 20 years and says this is the worst case he's seen of its kind.

"It's just hard to imagine somebody would do something like this - this was not a one time thing, this was not a two time thing," Wittenton said.

Investigators say the sexual offenses span a 10 year period. Court documents show the most recent occurred in 2004. Wittenton said all three of the victims were boys between the ages of 10- and 20-years old.

An aunt of one of the victims contacted the Harnett County Sheriff's Office.

Jewell is being held at the Harnett County Detention Center in lieu of $2.5 million bond.

Documents show detectives requested such a high bond because of the number of charges and also because Jewell had threatened to kill his wife if he were arrested.

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