GRAIN VALLEY, Mo. — More charges were filed Wednesday against a Grain Valley elementary school teacher already charged with child molestation and sodomy of young boys at his school.
Matthew J. Nelson, 33, a teacher at Prairie Branch Elementary School in Grain Valley, now faces eight felony counts, up from the original four counts filed against him in connection to the alleged attacks on the boys, ages 7 through 9.
According to the new court documents, Nelson inappropriately touched the boys in the classroom, during summer school and on school outings. On a trip to a Royals game, a parent reported to police observing Nelson rubbing the inner thigh of a student.
In the first court documents filed last week, Nelson is alleged to have touched boys’ private areas through their clothing or directly to their skin during classroom hours, including during movie times and reading periods. In an interview with Child Protection Center authorities, one of the boys said that the alleged incidents always happened while there were other students in the classroom, but never when there were any adults around.
The parents of the alleged victims told police that they had noticed behavior changes in their children, slipping grades and unusual outbursts.
In addition, the alleged victims said that they felt safer when Nelson was “not at school,” and that Nelson would kiss them on the cheek when they would ask him about school work at his desk.
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