PHILIPSBURG:--- The prosecutor office demanded six years for the former principal Cedric Hodge (52) Hodge appeared in court on September 28th he was charged with lechery, assault, rape and the possession and distribution of pornographic images which had taken place in 2004/2005 and in 2015. According to the Prosecutor’s Office, the suspect actively groomed his victims through chats took them out with permission of the parents, bought them gifts and took two of them to a secluded property of his.
In one case he bought one of his victim's alcohol. All the three victims were minors at the time the acts had taken place. The suspect abused the trust the minors had in him as a school principal. The chats the suspect had with his victims had a certain intention, according to the Prosecutor’s Office. The Prosecutor’s Office asked for a 6-year jail sentence against Cedric Hodge, the judge will give its verdict on October 19.
Cedric Hodge was caught by a parent whose son was chatting one night with Hodge and later that night the teen asked his mother for permission to meet his principal at a hotel. The mother who became suspicious took her son telephone and began reading the chat messages. According to information SMN News received when the mother read the chat she almost fainted but the next morning took her son telephone to the police station and filed an official complaint against Cedric Hodge was later arrested when his house was also searched. Some weeks later the prosecutor re-arrested Hodge who has been behind bars ever since then. Hodge will know his fate on October 19 for the serious violations of minors whose trust he earned as a school principal.
Prosecution demanded six years for former Principal Cedric Hodge.
