Former Charlotte teacher pleads guilty to inappropriately touching children at camp

A former elementary school teacher in Charlotte was sentenced to prison Monday for inappropriately touching several young boys and assaulting them during a camp that he held at his home.

Taji Brown, who was wanted for 26 warrants, which include 13 counts each of indecent liberties with a child and indecent liberties with a student, turned himself in to police in August 2017.

Brown was a 5th-grade teacher at Billingsville Elementary School in south Charlotte.

On Monday, Brown plead guilty to five counts of having indecent liberties with a child. He was sentenced to serve at least 20 months in prison as part of a guilty plea. He could face 33 months in prison.

Brown will also has to register as a sex offender for 30 years.

According to warrants, an investigation into Brown began in late July when a 10-year-old boy told his mother that Brown inappropriately touched him in the shower while he was spending the night at Brown's home.

In court on Monday, officials said Brown would shower with multiple young boys and would reportedly wash their "genitals and buttocks." Brown allegedly bathed one victim at school, court officials said.

One of the victims' mother said her son used to love school and was vibrant. Now, he's reportedly withdrawn and doesn't like school, the mother said. In court, she said she forgives Brown because she's a Christian.

Investigators said the juveniles attended Brown's summer camp where he said he was helping them by "teaching grooming," court officials said.

Brown reportedly ran a program called "G.U.D.B.O.Y.S.", which stands for Gentlemen Understanding Destiny By Overcoming Your Statistics. It was a mentoring and summer program.

This story was originally published July 2, 2018 at 11:46 AM.