A Massachusetts boarding school has indefinitely suspended an employee after learning he is accused of kidnapping a 7-year-old girl and throwing her off a bridge.
The Fay School in Southborough confirms Joshua Hubert was hired in June as a systems support analyst. The school says he was still in his probationary period when he was arrested.
Hubert allegedly kidnapped the young child from her grandparents' home in Worcester early Sunday morning. Police say he was a guest at a cookout at the home, and that he took her while she slept in a chair.
Investigators believe Hubert put the child in a car, choked her and threw her into Lake Quinsigamond. She swam to shore and was found safe around 4 a.m. in Shrewsbury.
"Over the past seven weeks he did not have any unsupervised interactions with students in our summer programs," Rob Gustavson, the head of the Fay School, said of Hubert in a letter to parents. "We have suspended Mr. Hubert indefinitely, and he will not be on campus pending a police investigation. As always, Fay will assist authorities who are investigating.
The child victim had no connection to the Fay School, the letter noted.
Hubert began working as a dispatcher for the Holden Police Department in 2006 and remained there for about a year. Officials in Sterling also confirm Hubert worked as an emergency medical dispatcher for a few months in 2007. His employment there ended during his one-year probation period.
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Police are asking businesses in Shrewsbury and the Lincoln Street area in Worcester to check surveillance footage for a light-colored Saturn Ion that may have parked nearby.
A plea of not guilty was entered on Hubert's behalf when he was arraigned Monday.
