MANCHESTER, NH – Manchester School District is taking a closer look at safety training for district employees and contractors after police announced the arrest Thursday of a therapy provider accused of assaulting a child at Parker Varney Elementary in December.
According to police on Dec. 22 a parent reported to police that their child, age 7, had come home from school with injuries to his face and alleged that the boy had been assaulted by his in-school behavioral therapist. The therapist, identified by police as Louis Efstathiou, 69, worked for Applied ABC, which specializes in autism therapy.
A warrant was issued by police for Efstathiou’s arrest and on Jan. 18, 2024, he turned himself in at Manchester police headquarters.
He is charged with second-degree assault (felony), two counts of simple assault, and endangering the welfare of a child. His bail was set at $1,000 cash.
Manchester Superintendent Jennifer Chmiel Gillis issued a statement regarding the arrest:
“Manchester School District places the highest emphasis on student safety, and we take all allegations extremely seriously. Upon receiving this allegation, the worker – who is not a district employee – was immediately dismissed from the building and will not return.
The district contracts with agencies to provide services such as nursing, speech therapy, physical therapy and behavioral therapy. These contracted providers hire their own employees and perform background checks and fingerprinting, as well as training. The provider must provide proof that these have taken place before the employee can begin work in a school.
Due to recent events, the District is taking immediate steps to ensure contracted providers – as is the case with our own employees – are up to date on safety training and reporting of incidents. Manchester School District is complying with any requests from Manchester Police on this matter.”