Florida teacher found naked in elementary school classroom over holiday break, police say

By Rachael Perry

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    PORT ST. LUCIE, Florida (WPBF) — Pictures from the St Lucie County Sheriff’s Office show the inside of the classroom where officials discovered a man naked inside a local elementary school.

According to the Port St. Lucie Police Department, Joe Urias, a teacher at Somerset College Preparatory Academy, was found naked in an elementary school classroom.

Law enforcement was called to the Windmill Point Elementary School on Thanksgiving evening for an alarm indicating a burglary in progress.

Port St. Lucie police Chief Leo Niemczyk said officers responded and checked the perimeter but did not find any signs of forced entry and left the scene.

They returned shortly after when the sheriff’s deputy who lives on the campus called for help.

“The deputy later saw a male, a nude male inside through the window inside the school,” Niemczyk said. “The male saw a deputy, quickly got dressed and exited the school. The deputy tried to apprehend him, and at that point, the now clothed, formerly nude male committed battery on that deputy.”

Niemcyzk said Urias punched the deputy in the face. Police responded, and Urias was arrested. Court records show several items were found inside the classroom where Urias was seen, including clothes, food, a laptop, sex toys and marijuana.

Pictures from SLCSO show what appears to be a makeshift bed and a large amount of food and drinks.

WPBF 25 News asked Niemcyzk how long they believe Urias was staying in the classroom.

“He said he was homeless and perhaps he was planning to spend the holiday weekend there. I don’t, but we don’t know how long he was in there,” he said.

Niemcyzk said they soon found out Urias was employed at Somerset College Preparatory Academy as a teacher.

WPBF 25 News reached out to administrators at the charter school. They did not get back to us by the time of publication.

However, the school posted to its Facebook page, writing the following: “We are reaching out to inform you about a matter that recently came to our attention involving allegations, unrelated to our school, against an individual formerly employed at our school. Please be assured that we are cooperating with law enforcement as they address this situation.

We want to emphasize that the safety and well-being of our students and community are our top priority. As part of our commitment to maintaining a safe environment, all prospective employees at our school undergo thorough background checks and screening conducted by the local school district. We do not hire anyone without this clearance. We have handled this matter administratively and will take all necessary actions to ensure that this individual does not return to our campus. We understand that this news may be concerning, and we are here to support our families during this time. Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions or concerns. Thank you for your understanding and support as we work through this matter with the utmost care and diligence.”

Comments on the post include several from what appears to be parents of students questioning the school’s hiring practices.

The school’s account responded to the concerns, writing: “The District has changed their way of giving the school information as of week before last. We will now be told when someone has a record so we will be able to decide whether or not we want to hire them, instead of just being told they’re cleared or not. In the next year, the state is going to complete the development of the database that will then allow Charter Schools to do their own clearance and background checks and no longer have to rely on districts.”

As for the night of the incident, police say Urias told them he was able to get inside the elementary school by using an unlocked window.

WPBF 25 News also reached out to the St. Lucie County School District for comment.

A spokesperson offered the following statement: “SLPS does not routinely discuss security protocols publicly. However, I can confirm that the security alarm did alert police as designed. Alarms are just one part of our multilayered and enhanced security measures we have in place to secure our campuses.”

Niemcyzk said, thankfully, no one else was at the school when the incident took place.

Urias was arrested and taken to the St. Lucie County Jail.

He faces the following charges: lewd and lascivious behavior, burglary, possession of marijuana, and battery of a law enforcement officer.

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