Police Blotter - January 25, 2018

CRIMINAL SEXUAL CONDUCT

A Mount Pleasant martial arts instructor whose business has ties to two Daniel Island area preschools was arrested last week on criminal sexual misconduct charges related to incidents that allegedly took place between June 24, 2013 and July 5, 2013. James Michael Buchen, 45, has been charged with criminal sexual conduct with a minor second degree and criminal sexual conduct with a minor third degree, according to a press release from the Charleston Police Department.

Between those two dates, two 15-year-old victims who attended a martial arts camp through Buchen Martial Arts on Leinbach Drive, told police that Buchen had sexually assaulted them, stated the release. Buchen was the owner and chief instructor of the camp.

“After lunch, participants typically watched movies and rested,” the press release continued. “One afternoon one of the victims was resting in the back half of the room when Buchen approached her and put her head in his lap.”

He then reportedly began to massage her shoulders and put his hands down her shirt and beneath her sports bra. The second 15 year-old victim told police that one afternoon during camp the suspect sat next to her, put his hand down her pants and touched her inappropriately. The two victims had been taking karate lessons from the subject since they were 10-years-old, the release states.

According to Buchen’s website, the business had previously offered martial arts classes at both Daniel Island Academy and Sundrops Montessori on Clements Ferry Road. In response to the arrest, Daniel Island Academy explained that Buchen himself never taught at the facility.

“We don’t currently have a program with them at the school,” said Jonna Palmer, spokesperson for Daniel Island Academy. “As for the owner who is being charged, he has also never taught a class in the facility. We have obviously asked for our name to be removed from their website since those are prior to 2018.”

Sundrops Montessori did not respond to a request for comment on the arrest before the paper went to print. This case is still under investigation.

MOTOR VEHICLE THEFT

A white Mercedes Benz was stolen from a residence in the Daniel Island Park neighborhood sometime between midday Jan. 14 and 15. According to the report, the vehicle was last seen parked in front of the residence on the street. The victim advised that another one of his vehicles that was also parked on the street had been ransacked and the door left open. The vehicle had been left unsecured overnight with the keys inside. This case is still under investigation.

THEFT FROM A BUILDING

A resident of a condominium on River Landing Drive alerted police on Jan. 16 after noticing several items were missing from her residence. She believes the items were taken between September 2017 and January 2018. The victim told police that she had exchanged keys with a neighbor for emergency purposes during Hurricane Irma and since then has started noticing items missing, including medication, keys and food, the report states. This case is still under investigation.

LARCENY

Several bales of insulation, valued at $900, were stolen from a construction site on Fairchild Street between Jan. 13 and 17. According to the police report, an internal report from the construction company advised that an employee of the company was spotted loading the bales into a personal trailer. A contractor with the company alerted Charleston Police Department headquarters on Jan. 17 and reported the theft.

HARASSING TELEPHONE CALLS

Police were contacted earlier this month in reference to multiple harassing text messages. The complainant reported that she had received multiple text messages in similar context from an acquaintance between Dec. 12, 2017 and Jan. 4, 2017, according to the police report. This case is still under investigation.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Team 5 received calls in reference to a suspicious vehicle located on Benefitfocus Way on Jan. 8 just before 5 a.m. The report states that the vehicle’s occupants appeared to be attempting to enter other vehicles in the parking lot. The suspects were eventually frightened off by a security officer.

THEFT

Police were contacted on Jan. 14 in reference to a possible theft at a residence in Pierce Park on Daniel Island. The complainant stated that after renting a room at his residence to a woman and evicting her on Jan. 11, he noticed that several household items were missing, including bedding, decorative items, a garage door opener and possibly other items, the police report stated. The complainant was advised that the case was a civil issue and he asked for the report to be made.

VANDALISM

An unknown subject utilized an object to scratch panels of a vehicle at apartments on Jack Primus Road between Jan. 8 and Jan. 9. According to the report, the victim stated that this was the second time this had taken place. This case is still under investigation.