West Michigan military recruiter faces alleged sexual misconduct in Ottawa County with students
He was charged with two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct of persons 13-15 and received a $35,000 cash surety bond, which he subsequently posted.
OTTAWA COUNTY — A 28-year-old military recruiter from Norton Shores has been charged with criminal sexual conduct for allegedly having inappropriate contact with students in the Ottawa County area.
Nicholas Phelps was arrested on Jan. 9 and arraigned in the Grand Haven 58th District Court before Judge Craig E. Bunce. He was charged with two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct of persons 13-15 and received a $35,000 cash surety bond, which he subsequently posted. He faces up to 15 years in prison and a lifetime on the sex offender registry.
Authorities released the information on Monday, Jan. 19, but the incident or incidents were reported on Jan. 12, according to a news release. Authorities have not disclosed which school districts with which Phelps had contact.
In August, investigators from the Ottawa County Sheriff's Office began looking into reports of inappropriate contact between teenage students and the military recruiter. The investigation indicated that the recruiter appeared to use his professional role to initiate contact with these students, according to the sheriff's office.
“Sheriff's office personnel immediately enacted measures to prevent this subject from having further contact with students. Additional investigation revealed that prior to the beginning of the sheriff's office investigation, the suspect made contact with multiple females from area schools and sexual contact and inappropriate messaging occurred,” according to the release.
WOODTV-8 reported that Phelps came to the attention of his superiors in the U.S. Marines in May.
After those initial reports, Phelps was placed on "relief for cause" status, WOOTV-8 reported. He was removed from his role as a recruiter and given a no-contact order barring him from communicating with former recruits and minors who were in the recruitment process.
District reaction
While the schools where the alleged victims attended were not yet released, a statement from Grand Haven Public Schools went out to parents on Monday.
Kristin Perkowski, superintendent of Grand Haven Area Public Schools, assured parents that they were keeping student safety a priority.
“Allegations of this nature are deeply concerning. When concerns like these are brought to our attention, we take them seriously and respond promptly within our authority, working closely and transparently with law enforcement and the appropriate agencies,” the statement read.
“We continually strive to review and strengthen our practices related to safety, and, as always, we encourage students, families, and staff to continue reporting anything they see or hear that seems concerning, as timely reporting is an important part of keeping our school community safe.”
This incident remains under investigation. Authorities ask anyone with information regarding inappropriate contact with Phelps to contact the Sheriff's Office or Silent Observer at 1-877-88-SILENT (745368) or via mosotips.com.
— Heather VanDyke covers northern Ottawa County for the Ottawa News Network. Contact her at hvandyke@ottawanewsnetwork.org.
