Pewaukee school bus driver charged, accused of sexually assaulting child

PEWAUKEE, Wis. (CBS 58) -- A school bus driver is accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting a child on his bus over the past several months.

Thomas Felser, 62, appeared in Waukesha County Court Friday, May 16. He is charged with one count of repeated sexual assault of a child and three counts of sexual misconduct by school staff.

Felser was driving for a company hired by the Pewaukee School District. Court records show suspicions first rose this week when the girl's mother checked a GPS tracking app showing the location of her daughter's bus.

As she ran errands Tuesday, the mom noticed her six-year-old child's bus had not moved in 10 minutes. When she went to the bus's location, only Felser and the girl were on the bus. 

The mom said she didn't see anyone inside the bus, so she called out her daughter's name. That's when she said Felser popped his head up "super fast" from the middle of the bus. He was alone with the girl on the bus and told the mom they often talked together on the bus.

The child later told her mom and investigators Felser had repeatedly touched her inappropriately. She said she sometimes told Felser "no thank you" when he touched her, but she added "he forgets."

The victim also told investigators Felser would give her Skittles and other candy as a treat and warned she couldn't tell anyone about the time they spend together.

"He used his position of authority to routinely access and abuse the victim," Assistant District Attorney Vivien Morris said. "He engaged in a pattern of abuse with grooming behaviors."

Police then reviewed surveillance from inside the bus Tuesday. They said that footage showed Felser go to the middle of the bus when the victim was the only passenger left. She went and sat with him, but while they could be seen sitting extremely close to each other, the seats obstructed what was happening.

However, investigators pulled the recordings from other days and found on April 3, April 16 and April 23, video showed Felser touching the girl's private areas.

In an interview with the bus company, GO Riteway, a manager said it was "unusual" that Felser had never written up a student for poor bus behavior. The manager later questioned whether the reason for that was "so that the bus video would not be reviewed."

Neighbors in the area where Felser parked the bus declined to be interviewed. However, one parent said Felser was his middle school math teacher, and his children were now on Felser's route.

Another parent said she noticed the bus sometimes stopping near her home for extended periods and thought it was odd. However, she figured the driver was looking at his phone or going through a checklist as part of a routine. 

Felser previously worked as a teacher in the Pewaukee School District for 30 years. The victim's mother testified during Friday's hearing. The court ordered she not be identified, but during her testimony, she said she'd already heard from a former classmate who said, in high school, Felser took a group of girls out for drinks in Milwaukee before having sex with one of them.

She said she believes it's only a matter of time before more victims come forward.

In court Friday, prosecutors sought a $1,000,000 bond for Felser. Citing his longtime ties to the community and lack of a previous criminal record, Waukesha County Court Commissioner David Herring set his bond at $350,000.

Herring noted that while he wouldn't grant the $1,000,000 request, he was still compelled to set a six-figure bond because of the evidence presented Felser had committed serious crimes.

"It's hard for this court to turn a blind eye to the allegations of the video surveillance and information that's being -- something happened," said Waukesha County Court Commissioner David Herring, 

Prosecutors say Felser was a longtime teacher and coach in Pewaukee and they suspect more victims could be coming forward as word of Felser's arrest spreads. 

If convicted, Felser faces a maximum sentence of 70 years in prison. He is due back in court for a preliminary hearing May 28.