A former janitor pleaded no contest Thursday to charges he inappropriately touched eight girls on the campus of a middle school where he worked in the City of Industry.
Michael Anthony Barry, 60, of La Puente, is facing 14 years in state prison in connection with his plea to five felony counts of lewd act upon a child, five misdemeanor counts of child molesting and one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
The crimes — involving girls ranging in age from 10 to 12 — occurred at Torch Middle School between August 2014 and June 2015 and August 2016 and May 2017, according to Deputy District Attorney Babette Huley.
At a news conference last year following Barry’s arrest, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Lt. Todd Deeds of the Special Victims Bureau told reporters that Barry “would befriend the victims and be very nice to the victims, and he would do things like offer them candy and just be very kind to them, and he gained their trust as a result,” Deeds told reporters.”
In a statement released after Barry’s arrest that did not mention the janitor by name, Bassett Unified School District’s superintendent, Debra French, said there were “complaints that he made inappropriate physical advances toward students.”
“Upon learning about the behavior, Bassett Unified immediately contacted the Department of Children and Family Services and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, who conducted an investigation,” French said in the statement. “Bassett Unified has a zero-tolerance policy for acts of any kind that put our students in danger … The district will continue to offer affected students and their families counseling services and support.”
The custodian was initially arrested in June 2017 at his home, according to French. He was released on bond, according to jail records.
Barry — who has no prior criminal history — surrendered in July 2017 after learning that criminal charges had been filed against him, Deeds said.
He has remained behind bars since then, according to jail records. He is due back for sentencing Dec. 11 in a Pomona courtroom.