Miami teacher arrested and accused of beating teens

A Miami man was arrested and faces child molestation and public drunkenness charges after two teenagers told police he beat up the couple.

The Miami Public Schools website states that Charles Preaus is a Spanish teacher at the middle and high schools.

Attorney Chase McBride says he's still piecing together exactly what happened on Sept. 12 but is concerned.

The affidavit for Preaus states that two teenagers came forward to police and said they were walking down a street in Miami when Preaus began cursing at them, following them and attacking them. The boys then told Miami police that Preaus began choking them.

The teens even told Preaus that they would give him $100 if he stopped attacking them. The victims' family says pictures from the incident show bruises and a bloody eye.

Officers spoke with Preaus about the incident and he claimed the teens were on his property and were behaving disrespectfully, stating that the children attacked him. He told officers he would still defend himself. Officers determined that Preaus admitted to drinking alcohol at the time of the incident.

He refused to provide police with any further information and was arrested Friday and taken to the Ottawa County Jail.

“I think the parents' main concern is one thing: Why did it take so long for the man to be arrested if this happened a few weeks ago?” McBride said.

McBride hopes anyone who witnessed the night of Sept. 12 in Miami will come forward to assist in the investigation.

“If anyone in the Miami area has a Ring doorbell and may have a video camera from that night, contact us or the Miami Police Department. “That’s one of the main things we’re looking for: We want to provide real context to what happened here,” McBride said.

News On 6 reached out to Miami Public Schools and asked if Preaus was still employed by the district, but did not receive a response.

News On 6 also contacted Preaus' attorney, who declined to comment at this time.