MUNCIE, Ind. — A Muncie man working at a troubled youth center has been arrested after Child Services received a report that he was dating a 17-year-old girl under his care.
Camron Stewart, 24, was arrested Wednesday afternoon at the Youth Opportunity Center in Muncie after police determined he had looked at an underage girl’s breasts and not reported it. He was charged with one count of felony child seduction.
Court documents detail that Muncie police were called to the center after multiple reports were taken by DCS regarding a 17-year-old resident who told a friend she was dating Stewart.
One DCS report stated that Stewart had asked the girl to see her breasts while he was doing “checks” on the children. One peer reported that the girl lifted her shirt after Stewart gestured toward her and that he replied: “D*mn girl put those weapons away.”
During an interview with Child Services, the girl reportedly said that a week prior Stewart kept looking at her breasts, gestured for her to take off her shirt and then stated “D*mn girl.”
Officers interviewed Stewart on Wednesday about the allegations. He said he had been working at the center for about five months in the detention area where he watches over children and performs checks to ensure their safety.
Stewart reportedly told officers that, during a recent check, a 17-year-old resident was not wearing her overalls properly. He said that, when he motioned for the girl to pull the straps up, she instead pulled up her shirt to expose her breasts.
Police said Stewart initially denied looking at the girl’s breasts, but that later he admitted he saw them “for a few seconds” before looking away. But police said that security footage showed Stewart’s head looking toward the exposed breasts and never shows him looking away.
When asked why he didn’t report the incident, Stewart claimed “he forgot” because a toilet in the cell next to the girl began flooding soon after. He reportedly said he didn’t want to look at the girl’s breasts but that she had exposed them before he could say otherwise.
Stewart reportedly admitted that he knew he was supposed to report incidents of that nature, and that he had in the past, but that this time he forgot.
Officers then arrested Stewart and took him to the Delaware County Jail where he was booked for one count of child seduction – a level 6 felony. Online court records have not yet been updated to reflect an initial hearing in Stewart’s case.
