Former Seminole High teacher arrested

A former Seminole High School teacher who resigned amid allegations that he received a backrub from a female student was arrested today on a charge of interference with custody, a third-degree felony.

Thomas J. Anderson, 59, skipped class with a 16-year-old student and took her to his apartment, where he had her massage his back, legs and chest, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.

Investigators said after the victim agreed to skip class, Anderson arranged for a substitute teacher and told the administration he had a doctor's appointment. To avoid being seen with the victim, Anderson told her to wait for him off campus, where he picked her up, the sheriff's office said. It happened about 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 6, deputies said. After she asked to leave, Anderson dropped her off near her home to avoid detection.

Anderson, of 12760 Indian Rocks Road, No. 1012 in Largo, was booked in the Pinellas County Jail about 4:30 p.m. today. The charge, which is used when someone illegally takes a minor from the custody of a public agency, is a third-degree felony that carries up to five years in jail. His bail was set at $5,000.

Anderson admitted to taking the student off school grounds to his house. He said he later dropped her off a block from her house so her parents would not find out she had skipped school.

Before Anderson's resignation, superintendent Clayton Wilcox had recommended that he be fired. He was hired in 1973 to teach at Clearwater High School. He resigned in 1980, was re-hired in 1983 as a teacher at Dunedin Highland Middle School. He resigned again in 1984 and was re-hired as a substitute teacher in 1995. He came to Seminole the following year.

Anderson also coached the girls' basketball team had been accused of a similar offense before, according to school district records. In 1999, a student who had been his teacher assistant at Seminole High filed a complaint against him for rubbing her shoulders and lower back, documents in his disciplinary file revealed.

Anderson denied the charges and kept his job in exchange for a promise there would be "no touching of any female in any way that could be interpreted as inappropriate."

--Donna Winchester and Stephanie Garry, Times Staff Writer