MADISON, Ind. — A former mayor, school resource officer, police officer and baseball coach in Madison, Indiana was arrested on child seduction charges Thursday afternoon.
Timothy Armstrong, 63, was charged after a 15-month investigation into allegations of criminal behavior that happened while he was a school resource officer for the Madison Consolidated School District.
According to a news release, an Indiana State Police (ISP) detective began a criminal investigation in August 2022 after allegations of misconduct were forwarded to ISP.
The investigation determined that Armstrong had allegedly inappropriately communicated with a male student under the age of 18 on multiple occasions between April 2022 and August 2022.
According to the school district website, Armstrong was listed as Madison Jr. High School's Varsity Boys Baseball coach.
After the investigation, a warrant was issued for Armstrong's arrest on the following charges:
- Attempted child seduction
- Attempted promotion of child sexual trafficking
- Vicarious sexual gratification
- Child solicitation
- Attempted child exploitation
- Official misconduct (three counts)
- Inappropriate communication with a child (three counts)
Armstrong was taken to the Jennings County Jail and is scheduled for an initial court hearing on Monday, Nov. 20.
Armstrong served as mayor of Madison, Indiana between 2008 and 2011.
"I've been asked about this case for months," ISP Sgt. Stephen Wheeles said. "Due to who was involved in his position in that community, it made sense for the state police to do the investigation."
Madison residents, like Virginia "Micky" Davis, knew of Armstrong during his time in office.
"I'm shocked. I'm very, very hurt," Davis said. "I feel for the family."
Another town resident, who asked not to be shown on camera or named, said she remembered Armstrong's time in office.
"When I knew him as a mayor, I thought he was alright; you know, he seemed like he was pretty respectable," she said. "You know, how people can do that -- I'll never understand. But yeah, he was a shock."
Wheeles said the investigation is ongoing.
"While we take every allegation seriously, that that really obviously something, we really want to protect our children and do everything we can to make sure that they're safe," Wheeles said.
"We're committed to investigating these cases impartially and do everything we can to provide some kind of closure to the family [and] the victims that were involved in a situation like this," he said.
Wheeles is urging anyone with information pertaining to this case to reach out to investigators with the ISP Versailles post.
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