A 33-year-old man has been removed from his teaching post at Nature Coast Technical High School (NCT) after being charged with sending internet messages to a 14-year-old student via Snapchat and PlayStation while the teen was a student at Powell Middle School. According to Denise Moloney, public relations manager for the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO), detectives began their investigation on Aug. 7 after being told that a 14-year-old student had received internet messages from a teacher at Powell Middle School.
Moloney said that the teenager received the messages while a student at Powell Middle School and will begin attending Nature Coast Technical High School this year. After reviewing thousands of messages on the teen’s computer, detectives learned that the teacher, identified as 33-year-old George Beall, started communicating with the student almost daily via Snapchat and Playstation over the course of several months. Those messages elicited little response from the teenager, who told investigators about “feeling bad” about ending the messaging because the teacher had cancer and the student was his “only friend.”
When detectives interviewed him at the Nature Coast Technical High School, Beall admitted to sending text messages to the teenager about “anything and everything” and that the two had exchanged photographs via text. He was not specific about the content of those messages but said he did not recall them having sexual overtones. Later, detectives found several GIFs and emojis containing hearts and other depictions of love had been sent to the teen through Beall’s cell phone.
According to investigators, while Beall sent numerous messages to the student, the teen responded either not at all or with one-word replies.
“Detectives also noted that Beall would become upset when the victim failed to respond or was not interested in playing games on the PlayStation and/or chatting with him,” Moloney said.
On Aug. 9, detectives arrested Beall and charged him with transmission of harmful material to a minor and unlawful use of a two-way communication device. He is free on bond.
Beall was immediately removed from student contact and placed on administrative leave, and there is no indication that his activities involved other victims. However, the investigation continues,” Moloney said.
