"I'm angry. I have no words," Latoya "Stormie" Monroe said outside the Aldine ISD bus barn alongside several Houston community activists Monday morning.
Monroe said an older boy sexually assaulted her son for the past several months as he rode the bus to school.
However, Monroe said she didn't know about any sort of incident until last week when her son's backpack went missing. She told our sister station, ABC13 Eyewitness News, she called school transportation officials to ask them to review the security footage onboard the bus to see if they could tell what happened to the backpack.
SEE ALSO | Chicago police: Tattoo artist accused of sexually abusing women on South Side
Monroe said the assaults were captured on video, and that's when she got a call from the school.
"I would receive a call five hours later, asking me if I could come to the school and pick up my son, and there was an Aldine ISD officer that needed to speak to me," she recalled. "I get to the school and find out that my son was sexually assaulted. Days of questioning, days of talking to my child. The details became more and more graphic each and every time."
Community Activist Quannell X said the child also complained of stomach pains, and that's when doctors allegedly discovered internal injuries. Quannell also said that the bus driver thought the previous noise from the back of the bus was of kids fighting.
"According to the investigator, the bus driver stopped the bus because she thought they were fighting on the back of the bus. But this mother's child was fighting because he was being raped," Quannell said.
Aldine ISD released the following statement:
The safety of our students continues to be the top priority for Aldine ISD, and we are committed to providing a safe environment in the classroom as well as when being transported to and from school. Campus leaders consistently work to monitor student behavior and communicate with parents to resolve concerns when incidents occur. An investigation by Aldine ISD PD and district officials immediately began on Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023, after district administration became aware that an incident occurred on a district bus involving two of our elementary-age students. CPS was notified. Once the investigation has concluded, appropriate action will be taken based on the investigation findings. Because this is an active investigation and due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), we are unable to provide additional details to protect the privacy of student information.
Eyewitness News confirmed that Child Protective Services opened an investigation.
Monroe and her supporters want more immediate action. They want the bus driver removed and the school principal disciplined. Neither the school district nor the union representing bus drivers gave any additional comment on those demands.
RELATED | LSU student Madison Brooks hit, killed by car after rape, police say; 4 arrested
As for the child, Monroe said her son has gone back to school, but he is not riding the bus. She also said her 6-year-old boy doesn't fully comprehend what happened.
"He's not really, at his age, understanding the magnitude," she said. "He actually really stated, 'Why couldn't that boy be given a second chance? If God gives second chances, why couldn't the perpetrator get a second?'"
Because the alleged perpetrator is a juvenile, and juvenile cases are not public, we may never know if the student will be charged.
For updates, follow Miya Shay on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.